Family Matters And A New Twist In Life
by LorelaiAkaCoffeeAddict
Summary: LL all the way! Loooong awaited Chapter 25 is now up!
1. Family matters

**FAMILY MATTERS AND A NEW TWIST IN LIFE**

Author: LorelaiAkaCoffeeAddict

Rating: PG so far- might go up to R at some point (but I will give notice before then)

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and the WB.

Please ask before posting

Author's Note: Ok guys. This is my first Gilmore Girls FanFic. I hope you enjoy it. Tell me what you think.

AN2: Hey guys. I rewrote my story. Hope I put more of what was missing in it and made it a little more interesting. Please review.

**Family Matters And A New Twist In Life**

**Chapter 1**

Lorelai just stood there for what seemed like an eternity. She watched her daughter, crumbled down on the lawn in front of their house sobbing. It was the first time that she didn't understand her daughter but even worse than that she was disappointed in her daughter. She couldn't believe what had just happened. That she had caught her daughter and Dean, a very married Dean, coming out of Rory's bedroom obvious to what had just happened in there. The first time in her life, Lorelai didn't know what to do. She would have loved to just take her into her arms and tell her that everything would be fine but she couldn't. Not this time. This was a major screw up, nothing to forget or forgive about easily.

Lorelai took a deep breath and descended the steps of their front porch. She stood

behind Rory, not sure what to do. She gently put a hand on Rory's shoulder. "Rory."

Rory flinched at her touch. "Leave me alone," she said in a tear strained voice.

"Come on get up."

"I said leave me alone," she said in a stronger voice, almost yelling. "Go back to the Dragonfly, or wherever but leave me alone, I don't wanna talk to you right now." Rory got up and went into the house, slamming the door behind her without even looking at her mother.

Lorelai just stood there looking at the door. She hated fighting with Rory, but this wasn't something that would be easy to solve. How could Rory disappoint her like that? She's always been the rational and logic one and now she did something so stupid.

Lorelai decided to go back to the Dragonfly Inn; she didn't know how to talk to Rory. She couldn't talk to Rory right now; she was so disappointed in her, even mad at her for being so irresponsible.

Lorelai didn't recognize that someone was sitting on the front steps.

"Lorelai." The least person she wanted to see right now.

"Jason," she said in a stern voice, hoping that he would get the hint that she didn't wanna deal with him right now.

He stood up and blocked her way to the entrance of the Inn. "We need to talk, Lorelai."

"There's nothing left to talk about Jason. It's over. I don't wanna see you anymore."

Lorelai tried to walk past him but he took hold of her arm. "Let go of me, Jason."

"Not until you agree to talk to me about us. I love you Lorelai."

Lorelai tried to get free but Jason tightened his grip around her arm even more.

"If you would actually love me, you wouldn't have sued my family. There is no us anymore, now let go of me Jason."

Jason released her arm.

"This is not over yet." Jason stomped to his car and drove away.

Lorelai sat down on the front porch and rested her head in her hands. She heard someone walking into her direction.

"Hey," a familiar voice said in front of her.

"Hey." She looked up to see Luke looking down at her.

Luke instantly new something was wrong with her. She looked so sad and the wrinkles and dark circles under her eyes made her look ten years older than she had just an hour ago.

Luke sat down beside her and gently put his hand on her shoulder.

"Lorelai what's wrong? Did something happen?" Lorelai nodded.

"Rory and I had this big fight. She did something really stupid. We started yelling at each other and she said that she hates me and to leave her alone and she ran into the house and slammed the door behind her."

Lorelai got up and started pacing around.

"God, how could she? I mean, she's never talked to me like that. I mean, sure we had fights but not like this. But she was so stupid, so …. Just not Rory. She always did the right things and never screwed up, ok never might not be right, but nothings ever been as bad as this. I'm so disappointed in her Luke. And then if that wasn't bad enough I come over here and Jason starts rambling on and on about how much he loves me and that he wants me back."

At this Luke heart starts to race.

"I mean, geez, how many times do I have to tell him, until he gets the fact that it's over. I mean I don't even know why I didn't see this coming. Arrgghh."

Luke walked over to her and gently took hold of her arms in order to calm her down. Lorelai flinched when he touched the spot where Jason had grabbed her before.

"Sorry." He let go of her.

"No, no. It's not… Jason held my arm a little too tight."

Luke got angry. "What?! I'm gonna kill this guy. How could he hurt you. Are you allright? God, Lorelai."

Now it was Lorelai's turn to calm him down. "No, Luke. Don't worry. Just a little bruise."

"Just a little bruise?! Lorelai I'm so sorry I wasn't here. God Kirk is so gonna regret this."

Lorelai took his hand. "Shh, Luke, don't worry, I'm allright."

Luke took a deep breath and looked into her eyes. "Are you sure?"

Lorelai went pack to the steps and sat down followed by Luke. She looked down at her hands. "About Jason? Yes. About Rory? No. Definitely not allright."

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Lorelai looked into his questioning eyes.

"I do want to talk about it. But I can't. Not yet."

Luke nodded. "Well you know where to find me. Anytime. I'll be there."

Lorelai managed a little smile and Luke smiled back at her.

"Look, I'm sorry but I need to be alone for a while. Why don't we go upstairs and try to get some sleep and I'll see tomorrow morning."

Luke got up and helped Lorelai to her feet. "Allright try to get some rest, you know where to find me if you need some company."

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah I know thanks. I just need to be alone for a while."

Luke nodded. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow then. Goodnight, Lorelai."

Goodnight, Luke." She squeezed his hand and walked upstairs to her room. She knew she wouldn't get much sleep that night.

Luke stayed outside on the porch for a while and then went upstairs into his room. He had never seen her like this, she looked so sad. 'Whatever happened it must have been really bad'. He knew Lorelai would talk to him eventually, but she needed time. And he would give her as much time as she needed.


	2. Company

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Amy Sherman Palladino and the WB, I don't own any of them

**Chapter 2**

Lorelai took a look at her alarm. "1:25". She couldn't get any sleep. Not with all this stuff going through her mind. There were so many things she didn't know how to deal with. Her parents being separated; Jason not leaving her alone; and now Rory. And then there was Luke. Her friend Luke, who now was becoming more than just a friend. She didn't know if this whole dating thing would screw up their friendship, she wouldn't know how to live without him as friend. But on the other hand she knew that she had had feelings for him for quite a while, only now she was willing to slowly admit it to herself. After so many years. The whole town had seen it come, why didn't they. That was the least she wanted to worry about now.

Rory. That's what she had to deal with right now. She didn't know how. No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't find a solution, heck not even a reason for why Rory did something like this. She said she loved Dean and Dean loved her. But she couldn't just screw up a marriage. A marriage that was so new. A long time ago she had dumped him, rejected him and picked Jess over Dean. And now this. Lorelai had always thought that she had raised Rory to do better than this. To do better than herself. To not do the same mistakes she had done.

'This is ridiculous. I don't know what to do. What is wrong with that kid?'

Lorelai thought about Luke. Maybe she could take his offer to give her some company, but then it was so late. 'Have I ever worried about this before? Why now?'

Luke opened the door to his room at the Inn on the third knock. "What the …"

He stopped as soon as he saw Lorelai standing there in her puppy pj's. She looked very tired and the circles under eyes seemed even darker.

"Lorelai?"

"I'm sorry, Luke. I woke you up didn't I? God of course I did. I mean who's not asleep at this time of the night, right? I'll just go back to my room and let you go back to sleep. I'm sorry, Luke."

She turned around to leave but was stopped by Luke's hand on hers. Luke stepped back and she walked past him into his room.

"Can I get you something? Some water?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No thanks, I'm fine. I just couldn't be alone anymore. I mean I was trying to get some sleep, but I couldn't cause there's so much stuff in my head that I just can't figure out. And I tried to figure it out and the only thing all the thinking did was giving me a really bad headache. And then I remembered your offer, you know the giving me some company thing and…"

"Lorelai." Luke stepped in front of her and looked into her eyes that were softly lit by the little moonlight that shone into the room. "It's okay. You can stay here. Why don't you take the bed and I'll just sleep over there in the armchair. Unless you wanna talk, then we'll just sit and talk."

"I can't, not yet."

"That's okay, don't worry. Then you just try to get some rest." He walked her over to the bed and pulled the sheets up around her shoulders. He sat down on the bed next to her and gently stroked her arm.

"How's your arm?" Luke so wanted to kill this Jason guy.

"Ok. Just a little sore."

"Allright, well try to get some sleep." Luke smiled at her and got up.

"Luke?"

"Mhhm?"

"Could you, uh…"

He walked back to stand beside her. "What?"

"Could you, uh, sleep in here with me and just hold me. I don't wanna be alone right now." Lorelai gave him a sad smile.

Luke simply nodded. He walked around the bed and climbed in with her. He lay down behind her one arm under her head, the other one tightly tugged around her stomach.

"Thanks." She said softly almost inaudible.

He softly kissed the top of her head. "No problem." He whispered into her ear.

'So this is how this feels like' they both thought.'

Soon, they fell asleep in each other's arm. The first time in a very long time Lorelai actually felt safe and secure with a guy, comfortable to let down her guards she had built up also a long time ago. But with Luke she didn't need anything to protect her, she just felt safe.


	3. The letter

AN: Thanks for the great reviews. Sorry it took me a while to update, I made it a bit longer than last time. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: all of the characters belong to Amy Sherman Palladino and the WB

Chapter 3 

Lorelai slightly blinked at the streams of the soft morning sunlight shining on her face. For a moment she didn't know where she was, but then the events of the past night came back to her memory. 'Luke. I'm in Luke's bedroom at the Dragonfly.'

They had shifted their position during the night so now he was lying on his back with his arm around Lorelai, her head on his shoulder and her left arm draped over his body. She looked up to see Luke smiling at her.

"Morning", she mumbled into his chest.

He softly kissed her forehead. "Good morning. How did you sleep?"

Lorelai propped her head up on her shoulder. "Allright. Better than I would have without you being here. Thanks, again, for keeping me company, I mean."

Luke nodded. "Anytime."

Lorelai gave him a soft smile. "I need to get downstairs for breakfast."

Luke nodded. Lorelai gave him soft kiss on his cheek and left to get ready in her room.

"I'll see you downstairs." She said closing the door behind her.

Two hours later the guest of the test run had left and Luke was waiting for Lorelai in the lobby. Lorelai just was about to walk to the front desk when she saw him sitting in one of the armchairs. 'Wow, major deja-vu' she thought.

"Hey still here?"

Luke walked over to her. "Yeah, Caesar and Lane are both at the diner today and they said that they don't need my help, it's not really busy there I guess."

"I was just about to go home for a while. Well, Sookie told me to go 'cause I have worked my butt off for the last couple of weeks and she wanted to take care of the cleaning up."

Luke smiled at her sympathetically. "She's right, Lorelai. You look tired. You should go home and get some rest."

Lorelai's expression became sad when she thought about what had happened with Rory last night. She quickly tried to put on a smile so Luke wouldn't notice. He did, but didn't say anything. If she wanted to talk about what had happened between her and Rory, she knew he would be there for her, when she was ready.

"Hey why don't I walk you home. I mean Caesar and Lane said I'd only be in their way and I could keep you some company or…"

"That'd be nice. Let me just go say bye to Sookie."

They walked closer than normally but not obvious to anyone else. When they turned into the driveway Lorelai noticed that Rory's car was gone and stopped abruptly. Luke looked at her concerned face.

"What's wrong, Lorelai?" he said putting his hand on her shoulder.

Lorelai couldn't say a word. She started to quickly walk to the house and unlocked the door. She left the door open and Luke followed her inside. She walked to Rory's bedroom. No one was there. Rory's things were gone. She walked back into the hallway.

"Rory." She ran upstairs.

Luke went into the living room and saw an envelope sitting there on the couch table.

"Lorelai?"

She walked down the steps and saw Luke holding out the envelope to her. She slowly took it from him, pulled out the letter and started reading. Luke saw small tears running down her cheeks.

"Mom,

I'm sorry about last night. I'm not sorry about what has happened, though. I still love Dean and I know he still loves me. He told me that he and Lindsay couldn't make it work and that he's going to leave her.

I'm sorry that we had this bad fight. We both said things we probably shouldn't have said. But I'm not a kid anymore. I'm capable of making my own decisions, now.

I took grandma up on her offer to go to Europe with her for the summer. We're taking the early flight so we'll probably be on the plane when you read this. I'm not sure when I'll be back. I'll call you at some point.

Rory"

Luke watched her cautiously. Her face was getting pale and he quickly caught her in his arms when her knees seemed to give away under her body and brought her over to the couch.

She clung to him and sobbed into his chest, clutching the letter in her hand.

He stroke over her hair with one hand, the other arm still holding her tight against his body. "Lorelai?" He softly asked after a few minutes.

She took a couple of deep shaky breaths and looked into his face tears still running down her cheeks. She held out the letter to him.

He took it from her and began to read. He didn't know what was going on, he only knew that it must have been a really bad fight.

When he was done reading the letter he took Lorelai's face between his hands and gently wiped away her tears. "Lorelai, what's going on? I promise I won't tell anyone, but you need to talk about it. You know you can trust me."

Lorelai nodded and in a still shaky voice told him the whole story.

"I don't know how to handle this, Luke. I don't know what to do. I mean she's always been the mature one and thought about everything twice. We always talked about everything and now this. How could she do this? I mean, Dean is married and even if she still loves him, she rejected him a long time ago and picked Jess over him. She is ruining a marriage, Luke. How could she do this? Doesn't she know there's gonna be consequences to that? That's just so not her. And now this. Running away from all of it, with my mother, who's doing the exact same thing. I mean she can't think that's gonna solve anything for her, is she? I always thought I had raised her to do better than me and not to make the same mistakes I did as a teenager. I totally failed, Luke." Lorelai started to sob again.

Luke had listened to her carefully but he could not let her think of herself in this way.

"Lorelai listen to me."

He tilted her head up so she was looking into his face.

"You are so not a failure, Lorelai. You are the most amazing woman I have ever met. I mean look at you. At a very young age you had to become a grown up because you had Rory. But look what you made out of your life, Lorelai. You never gave up. You made it on your own, you got a job and worked yourself up to being the manager of a hotel, and you gave Rory a wonderful home and education. And now you're about to make your longest dream come true, to have your own hotel with Sookie. You are not a failure. And inspite of all the bad experiences you had to make in your life, you never lost you humor. Although it can get a bit annoying sometimes."

Lorelai smiled at that.

"You're amazing, Lorelai. I 've never seen someone do all this. Don't ever dare to say again that you're a failure. Cause you're not. Got that?"

She couldn't believe that he just said all that about her.

Lorelai nodded at him. "But what am I gonna do about Rory?"

Luke took her hands. "I don't know, Lorelai. But whatever you decide to do, I will help you as best as I can. You won't have to manage this on your own. I love you Lorelai Gilmore and I promise that I will never leave you alone."

Lorelai started to cry again but this time they were happy tears. "I love you too, Luke Danes."

He gently pulled her into an embrace and kissed her softly, hoping to ease some of her pain.

To be continued….

Allright guys. This was a bit longer than the first two parts. Hope you enjoyed it. Tell me what you think. I'll update soon.


	4. Being Serious

Disclaimer: all of the characters belong to Amy Sherman Palladino and the WB

**Chapter 4 **

Luke and Lorelai just sat there on the couch in each other's arms, enjoying the other one's company. Lorelai finally seemed to calm down.

She looked up at Luke and took a deep breath releasing it with a small sigh. "Thanks, Luke. Again."

Luke smiled at her. "I told you, anytime. That's what I'm here for."

"I still can't believe Rory slept with Dean."

Luke nodded. "Yeah, that's quite something. You know as hard as this might sound. You should try to forget about that for a while. You won't be able to change anything or find a solution, until Rory gets back. It'll only give you a really bad headache."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"Now, I know you're not one of the most patient people."

Lorelai poked him in the ribs and Luke took hold of her hand. "But maybe I can help to distract you a little bit." Luke grinned at her.

"Oh really? How?" Lorelai grinned at him.

"Oh, I don't know. How about this…" Luke leaned down and softly kissed her. Lorelai grinned up at him.

"Huh, not bad. Want more." She said in a baby voice and leaned up to kiss him again. Lorelai shifted her position so she was sitting on his lap, a leg on each side of him.

Neither of them wanted to break the kiss but they eventually had to stop for the lack of oxygen.

Lorelai smiled at him. "This is nice."

Luke nodded. "Yeah this is very nice." He gave her another kiss.

Lorelai leaned back in his arms and looked at him seriously.

"Luke. I know is might be a little weird now, but I don't want this to be like all the other relationships we had."

Luke looked at her a little surprised, not sure what she meant.

"I mean, I don't want this to be just a little fling that's not gonna last long. I want this to work, Luke. I've had enough fun. I mean this doesn't mean we won't have any fun or something like that. Trust me we will. I just want you to know that I'm serious about this, about us. I mean if you feel different about this then…"

Luke silenced her with a kiss and a small moan escaped her throat.

"Lorelai. I know exactly what you mean, believe me. I'm just as serious about us as you are. I want this to work just as much as you do. Believe me, I'm not gonna let you go that easily."

Lorelai grinned at him.

"I wasn't planning on going anywhere. I love you, Luke."

Luke pulled her into his arms. "I love you, too, Lorelai," he whispered into her ear.

Lorelai sat down next to him with her legs swung over his, and took hold of his hand.

"Luke?"

"Mhmm?"

"I was wondering how long we're gonna keep this to ourselves."

"Why?"

Lorelai shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, I really like having you for myself, but you know how hard it is to keep a secret in this town. And to be honest I don't see any reason why we should keep it a secret. Most of the people in town saw this coming anyway. I would say all of them," she said with a smile forming on her lips. "I guess we were the only ones who didn't see it coming. I really like being with you and I want people to see this, too. You know. I don't wanna hide from them."

Luke enjoyed the privacy they had at the moment, but Lorelai was right, it was basically impossible to keep a secret in Stars Hollow. And he wanted the people to see how happy he was with her.

"Yeah, I guess we could tell people. I mean basically we only have to tell Babette or Patty, they'll sure spread the news in no time. Or…" he said pulling her back in his lap.

"Or?"

"Or. I could just kiss you in the middle of town square. Then the whole town would see it with their own eyes."

Lorelai was kind of surprised about this comment. "I don't think you would have the guts to do this. You, grumpy Luke Danes, who doesn't like to show his feelings in public," she said in a teasing voice.

"Yeah, your probably right." He pulled into another long kiss, this time more passionate than before. After all it wasn't that bad of an idea.

After a couple of minutes Lorelai broke the kiss. "What do you think about dinner with Sookie and Jackson, maybe tomorrow night. What do think?"

Luke nodded. "Yeah that would be a good idea." He really liked Sookie and Jackson, and they've had know each other for quite a while now, so this wouldn't be too bad.

"Great." Lorelai said and jumped off the couch to get the phone. "She punched in Sookie's number and waited for them to pick up.

"_Hello?"_

"Oh, hi Jackson. Is Sookie there?"

"_Yeah, hold on a sec, she's trying to get Davey to take a nap. Here she is. Bye Lorelai."_

"Bye, Jackson."

"_Hey, Sweetie, what's up?"_

"Hey, Sookie. Having trouble with Davey?"

"_Yeah, a little. He's getting to old for a nap, but that's the only time Jackson and I can relax for a little while, you know."_

"Yeah I remember that. But that's how kids are."

"_Yeah. Why'd you call?"_

"Oh right. I was wondering if you were in the mood for dinner tomorrow night."

"_Yeah sure. I just don't know if I can get a babysitter."_

"We can do it at your place, if you don't mind. And besides I'd like to see Davey again. I haven't seen him for quite a while."

"_Yeah, ok. So how about 7?"_

"Is seven fine?" she said looking at Luke who nodded.

"_Sweetie who are you talking to? Is Rory there to?"_

"Uh, no. She's in Europe with my mother."

"_Well then, who were you talking to?"_

"See, I wanted to ask you if I could bring Luke with me?" Lorelai was hoping that her best friend would get the hint.

"_Yeah sure. Why not… wait are you? _OHMYGODOHMYGOD_."_

"Well if you're asking if Luke and I are finally dating, then yes we are." Lorelai heard her best friend shriek on the other side of the line.

"_Well, it was about time. Oh my god. I'm so happy for the two of you. Of course you can bring him along. And you gotta tell me everything."_

"Yeah I will. So we'll see you tomorrow night."

"_Allright, bye Lorelai."_

"Bye, Sookie."

Lorelai hung up with a grin on her face and sat back down next to Luke.

"What are you grinning about?"

"Nothing. Sookie's just really happy for us."

Luke put an arm around her and she rested her head on his chest.

"I'm kinda tired."

"Oh, allright. I guess I'll head home then."

Lorelai looked up at him. "You don't have to go, you know. I mean my bed is big enough for the two of us. And besides, I really enjoyed having you with me at the Inn, and I like the idea that I don't have to stay in his big and lonely house all by myself."

Luke smiled at her. "Allright. I liked being with you two."

And with that they went upstairs and fell asleep in each other's arms, just like they had the night before at the Dragonfly Inn.

To be continued…

Allright guys, hope you enjoyed it. Please review!!


	5. This is nice

Disclaimer: all of the characters belong to Amy Sherman Palladino and the WB

Chapter 5 

The next morning Lorelai woke up to the wonderful smell of coffee and food. 'I could get used to this', she said to herself with a smile as she tumbled down the stairs. She stopped at the kitchen doorway and smiled at the scene. Luke was standing there making pancakes and he had made chocolate chip muffins that were already sitting on the nicely set kitchen table. He put the pancakes on a plate and put them on the table with all the other things when he spotted her watching him. He smiled at her standing there in her sponge bob pyjama bottoms and a blue tank top.

"Hey there. I see my plan worked out."

"Really? What was your plan?" Lorelai said with a smile. She walked over to him and put her arms around his neck while he put his around her waist and pulled her closer to him.

"Waking you up with the smell of freshly made breakfast and coffee."

"How could a combination of food and coffee, and on top of that prepared by a sexy guy in boxers and a shirt not wake me?" she said grinning at him.

"Exactly my plan." He said and bent down to give her a long kiss. "Did you sleep well?"

Lorelai smiled up at him. "Very well. How could I not with you lying next to me. How about you?"

"Pretty good. Although I have to say that you take up quite some space in that bed."

"I do not." Lorelai said and punched him in the side.

"Hey. Is that what I get for making you breakfast?"

Lorelai looked as if she were thinking hard for a moment and then kissed him passionately. "That better?" she asked when they broke apart panting slightly.

Luke swallowed. "Uh, yeah. Just don't do that in the diner."

Lorelai grinned at him. "Aw. Lukey's turning red."

Luke glared at her, she knew he hated it when she used that name.

"OK, come on, let's sit down and eat breakfast. They sat down and enjoyed breakfast in silence, occasionally glancing at each other and smiling. When they were finished Luke got up and put the dishes in the dish washer.

"Well I gotta go to the diner for a while. I bet Caesar is not so happy about handling it alone. I think I'll give him a day off this week."

"Allright. But I'm gonna miss you today." Lorelai pouted. She got up from her chair and stood in front of him.

"Well you could always come by the diner and see me." Luke said and put his arms around her waist.

Lorelai gently stroked his arms. "I would but I don't know if I have time to there's so much stuff to do for the inn. I told Sookie to stay at home and enjoy some time with Davey. And Michel. Well you know, he's Michel. Are we still on for tonight?"

Luke nodded. "Yeah. Pick you up at a little before seven?"

"Yep. That's fine."

Luke bend down and kissed her softly. "Allright, I'm gonna head out now. I love you."

Lorelai smiled at him. She always felt her heart jump when he said that to her. "I love you too. Call me sometime?"

Luke kissed her again. "Sure. Bye."

"Bye." Lorelai watched him leave through the back door. Although they had said that they didn't care if people found out about them they still wanted to make sure that there wasn't gonna be too much gossiping.

Luke was glad that there weren't too many people in the diner when he came back. He didn't mind that people would find out about his relationship with Lorelai but he hated gossip about himself. He went upstairs to change and then got down to help Caesar. The only thing people noticed about him was that he wasn't as grumpy as normally.

Lorelai couldn't quite concentrate on her work at the inn. Not only was she thinking about Luke, but she also hadn't heard from Rory, so far. She thought about calling her but that might only make her more angry, so she just had to wait for her daughter to call her. She was really glad that Luke was there for her and that she could talk to him. Not that she couldn't have talked to him before, this was just different. Now he was able to comfort her and support her in a different way than he did before.

At that moment the phone in her office rang.

"Independence Inn, Lorelai Gilmore speaking?"

"Hey."

She smiled when she heard his voice on the other end of the line. "Hey yourself. How's it going?"

"Allright, it's pretty empty here, so I thought I'd give you a call. Are you busy?"

"Yeah, but I'm just gonna take a break for you. I was just thinking about you, actually."

Luke smiled at her words. "Yeah? Like what?"

"Nothing dirty, I have to disappoint you. Just how lucky I am to have you."

"That's even better. I'm lucky to have you too. Sooo…. how are you holding up?"

"Well you know. Michel is being a pain in the ass. He says he's having a migraine and can't work that much, but I think he's just lazy. Tom and his crew finally finished the fence for the horses, so we can let them out of the barn now. The curtains for the rooms got here today so we might actually get the rooms done before the opening. You know it's not like the rooms are the most important thing in a hotel, but…"

"Lorelai?" Luke interrupted her ramble. She had hoped that he wouldn't ask her again.

"I'm freaking out, Luke. I just want to know that she's fine, and that she's not gonna hate me forever. And I wanna call her but that would just separate her even more and have I mentioned that I'm freaking out here?" she sighed out loud and slumped down into her chair.

"Rory doesn't hate you. She'll get over it eventually, and you'll work everything out between the two of you. You gotta give her some time. Trust me, she's gonna call you soon. Hey do you want me to come over to the inn and give you some company?"

Lorelai sighed. "That's really sweet, but you don't have to. I have so much work to do I wouldn't be able to spend time with you. I'll just annoy Michel some more and hope that the time will go by quickly until I see you."

"Allright. I'll let you go back to work."

"Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks. For you know…"

"I know."

"Good. I love you."

"I love you, too. I'll see ya later. Bye."

"Bye."

At five thirty, Lorelai was finally able to go home. She checked the answering machine to see if there were any messages from Rory, but there was nothing on it. She quickly jumped into the shower, hoping that she would feel better afterwards, but it didn't help too much. She put on a pair of jeans, a red blouse and black boots. She wasn't really in the mood for dressing up, so she only put some light make up on and left her hair curly haging over her shoulders.

About five minutes before seven she heard the doorbell and went downstairs to open the door.

Luke was wearing a pair of jeans with a black shirt and had also left his baseball cap at home.

"Hey," she said and kissed him softly. "You look really nice, Luke."

Luke shuffeled his feet on the floor. "Thanks, I guess. You look really nice, too. So are you ready to go?"

"Yeah. Just let me get my purse." She locked the door behind them and they slowly strolled to Sookie's and Jackson's house holding hands.

To be continued….

AN: The next chapter will be at Sookie's. Please RR!!!


	6. dinner with friends

Disclaimer: all of the characters belong to Amy Sherman Palladino and the WB Chapter 6 

They walked over to Sookie and Jackson's house enjoying the comfortable silence and each other's presence.

"Ready?" Lorelai asked him before she knocked on the door and Luke nodded with a reassuring smile on his face.

Sookie opened the door, widely grinning at them. "Hey, there. Come in, come in. Good to see you guys, dinner's almost ready."

Lorelai went inside and Sookie hugged her hello. She also hugged Luke who felt a little uncomfortable doing so, but he didn't show it. They went into the living room where Jackson was.

"Hey Jackson." Lorelai said and also hugged him.

"Hey." Jackson and Luke shook hands.

"Hey Jackson. How's it going?"

"Pretty good. How about you? Want some beer?"

"Yeah, sure, why not."

Jackson went into the kitchen to get the beers and then he and Luke settled down in the living room while the girls disappeared into the kitchen.

"We'll be right back." Sookie said and closed the door behind them.

"Soo how's Davey doing?"

"Fine. He's taking a nap right now."

Lorelai nodded and peered into the pots on the stove. She loved to tease her friend. She knew Sookie wanted to know about everything that had happened during the last couple of days.

"LORELAI!!!! COME ON!!!" Sookie said. "Don't do this to me."

Lorelai had to suppress a smile. "I don't know what you're talking about, sweetie."

"You know what I mean… you gotta tell me about what happened with you and Luke."

"Ah. That's what you mean."

Sookie was about to explode.

Lorelai grinned at her best friend. "Allright, allright, don't get a heart attack, Sookie. "

"Well then don't give me one!!!"

"Luke and I are dating." Lorelai said grinning.

"Oh my god. Oh my god. You gotta tell me everything." She said and pulled Lorelai over to the kitchen table. They sat down and Lorelai started to tell her everything.

"Well, when I came back from cooling off from the encounter with Jason Luke was sitting in the lobby. He asked me if he was a mysterious man and of course I didn't really get what he meant. So he started talking about Jason and that Jason had said that we were still together and that he didn't know what he's being doing all the stuff for, he's been doing if I was already taken. And of course I told him I'm not taken and that Jason and I broke up. Let me tell you I'm so gonna kill this Jason guy. Anyway. So he angrily stormed out onto the front porch and just kept rambling. He told me that he'd never bought flowers before for someone and that he tried to let his actions speak because that's the romantic way to do it and that when he walked me home after the wedding, you know his sister's wedding, he thought there was a moment and I yelled back at him and said that there was a moment. All of a sudden he was completely quiet, then he took a step forward and I asked him what he was doing and he told me to just stand still. And then…. "

"And then what??" Sookie asked excitedly.

"And then he kissed me, Sookie." Lorelai said just as excited as her best friend. "And… I kissed him back. And then this stupid Kirk came running down the steps naked and Luke took off after him, but you've heard about that."

Sookie was staring at her best friend, completely speechless.

"Sookie? Say something." Lorelai said and shook her by the hand.

"Wow."

Lorelai grinned at her "I know!"

"Lorelai this is amazing I'm so happy for you."

Meanwhile in the living room Luke and Jackson were talking about that night, too.

"I just told her to stand still and kissed her and she actually kissed me back. And then this stupid Kirk comes running down naked and well you know the rest."

"Wow." Jackson was just as speechless as his wife had been.

"Yep."

"That's great, Luke. I mean that you guys finally got together."

"Yeah, it took us quite a while."

Sookie slowly got her voice back.

"Wow, that is so awesome, Lorelai. I'm so happy for you guys."

"Thanks, Sookie. He's just so sweet." Lorelai smiled at her best friend.

"Hey, what did Rory say to all of that."

Suddenly Lorelai's expression got sad she had just forgotten all the stuff about Rory for a while. Sookie softly touched Lorelai's arm.

"Hey, sweetie, what's wrong? Did I say something wrong. Is Rory not happy about this?"

Lorelai swallowed hard fighting her tears back.

"Sweetie, what's the matter." Sookie stood up and hugged Lorelai.

"It's allright, Sook. Rory… Rory doesn't know about us yet. She's gone to Europe with my mom."

Sookie sat down in the chair next to her. "Oh. Did something happen Lorelai?"

Sookie sensed that there was something wrong but she didn't wanna push Lorelai too far, if she didn't wanna talk about it.

"Yeah. But I can't tell you what happened, not yet. Luke is the only one who knows and he promised not to tell anyone. She really screwed up, Sook. And she ran away. With my mother who's running away from her problems with my dad."

Sookie tried to lighten up the mood. "Well, what do you say we go back to our guys, so they don't forget we still exist, and have dinner."

Lorelai tried to smile at her friend. "Allright."

They walked into the living room to the guys. Jackson had brought Davey back downstairs who was done with his nap.

"Hey, look, Davey. Mommy's here."

"There's my little boy. Did you have a nice nap, sweetie?" Sookie said in a baby voice and sat down next to Jackson on the couch with Davey in her arm, who happily smiled at them.

Lorelai walked over to Luke and sat down in his lap.

"Hey." She said and kissed him softly on the lips.

"Hey. You allright?" Luke noticed her red eyes and figured that she must have talked about Rory, too. He gently stroke her back while she cuddled into his embrace.

"Yeah, I'll be allright, I guess." Luke nodded and kissed her.

Sookie and Jackson smiled. They were so cute together. It was like the world stopped moving around them when they were together.

Lorelai and Luke really enjoyed the dinner with Sookie and Jackson. With the opening of the inn being only two weeks away, they never really had the time to get together just for fun and not for any business stuff.

The rest of the dinner was spent with light conversations and a little after ten Luke and Lorelai said goodbye to the young family.

Sookie pulled Lorelai away from the guys to talk to her for a second in privacy.

"What is it, Sookie?"

"Nothing, really. I just wanted to say how happy I am for the two of you. And if you need to talk about you know what, you know you can come to me anytime."

Lorelai gave Sookie a hug.

"Thanks, Sookie. I know. But this is something that Rory and I have to deal with pretty much on our own. And you know I have Luke now. He's helping me a lot. I just can't tell you what happened. I'm really sorry, Sookie."

Sookie shook her head. "Don't worry. I totally understand. I'm glad you got someone like Luke to be there for you, he's special, you know."

Lorelai smiled. "I know, he really is. I'm really glad I have him."

Again they said goodbye and Luke and Lorelai walked back to her house.

When they arrived at the door, Luke stopped. Lorelai turned around when he didn't come inside after her.

"What is it, Luke?"

"I, I think I should get going."

Lorelai's smile faded. She didn't want him to go but she also didn't want to put him under any pressure.

Luke saw her face change and quickly responded. "I mean, unless you don't want me to go."

Lorelai walked over to him and softly kissed him bringing her arms around his neck. "No, I don't want you to go."

Luke kissed her back and pulled her into his arms. "Then I won't go."

They walked inside hand in hand. Lorelai stopped abruptly when she saw the light on the answering machine blink.

To be continued…

Hope you liked it, guys!

Please review!!


	7. the long awaited outburst

Disclaimer: all of the characters belong to Amy Sherman Palladino and the WB

Rating: PG- 13 with some stronger words but nothing to bad.

**AN: Thanks again for the sweet reviews! You don't know what a good feeling it is to get such sweet feedback to your stories! I'm sorry I wasn't able to update any sooner. School is really keeping me busy. **

**So here's the next chapter…**

Chapter 7 

Lorelai stopped abruptly causing Luke, who was walking right behind her, to bump into her.

"Hey, what's going on?"

Luke saw her staring at something and, following her view, he saw the red light blinking on the answering machine.

"Oh."

Lorelai still didn't move.

"Don't you wanna know who it is?"

He put a hand on her shoulder to reassure her. Lorelai didn't say anything. She sat down in the chair that was standing right next to the bureau in the hallway, where the answering machine was. After a couple of seconds of what seemed like gathering her strength, she shakily pushed the play button on the answering machine.

It was the long awaited message from her daughter, the message she had been waiting for almost a week. But the person didn't sound like her little daughter anymore. She sounded like an adult.

"Hi. Uh. I just wanted to tell you that grandma and I will be travelling around Europe for a while. We're, uh, thinking about a month or something like that. Don't worry about us, Emily and I are fine. I'll call again sometime. Sorry I won't be there for the opening of the Dragonfly Inn, good luck with it. Bye."

That's all Rory had left on the machine, nothing about Dean or the fight with her mom or 'how are you mom' or a 'sorry mom', nothing like that at all.

Lorelai just sat there, she couldn't move. She felt like someone hat hit her with a baseball bat or something like that. How could she sound so cold. Her daughter who has always been the sweetest and most loving person she had ever know left such a cold message to her mom who loved her more than live itself.

"Lorelai?"

No answer.

"Lorelai?"

Still no answer. Luke knelt down next to her gently putting his hand on her knee.

After a few more moments Lorelai finally looked at him. There was so much pain in her eyes. They weren't the same ones he had fallen in love with so many years ago. All the events of the last couple of weeks had made her look ten years older.

Luke gently touched her hand and looked directly into her eyes. Lorelai's lip started to quiver and she started sobbing. Throwing her arms around his neck, she sobbed into his shoulder uncontrollably.

All the pain and sadness that had stocked up inside of her, finally made it's way out. She had cried on his shoulder before but never as hard as this. Luke put an arm around her shoulder and with the other on situated under her knees he lifted her out of the chair and into his arms. She had lost quite some weight over the last couple of days and her could feel her ribs. She hugged him even tighter while he walked over to the couch in the living room and sat down with her on his lap. Luke soothingly stroke over back and she finally started to calm down a little.

"Lorelai, talk to me, come on. I know it's hard but you can't let this stuff eat you away from the inside. You know I'm here for you. I'll always be there for you and I'm gonna help you as much as I can but in order to do this you gotta talk about your feelings."

Lorelai looked into his eyes. She couldn't believe how sweet he was and he was right she needed to talk about it so she did.

"How can she do this, Luke?" Lorelai got up from his lap and started pacing around the room. "I mean after all we've been through together."

Lorelai became louder with each word. Luke knew that she had to let her feelings out. He knew she was hurt but he also knew that she was angry about what Rory and Dean had done.

"God, she's so god damn stupid. Sleeping with her ex-boyfriend who's married, cheating on his wife with him. And then trying to talk herself out if it?! God I don't believe this. She's telling me she's not a kid anymore, but she sure as hell acts like a kid, saying that it's Lindsay's fault that Dean had cheated on his wife and that it's not his fault or Rory's! God that's so immature. If she screws up like that, she's gotta stand up for it. Am I right?"

Lorelai didn't even wait for Luke's answer and kept pacing around the room, waving her hands around to support her statements.

"Of course, I'm right. When you screw up you gotta stand up for it. And now… now she's running away from her problems.

Yeah, 'cause that's really mature, huh?

And what about my mom and dad? Are they out of their minds. After so many years of marriage, are they just gonna forget about the many happy times they had and throw it all away. They always told me what the right thing to do is and they always told me to give Chris another chance, hell a million chances, but what about them? Not once crappy chance to make up to talk about it? I don't believe this.

And then - there's Jason! Let's not forget about Jason! Is he out of his mind, too? Who does he think he is? Like I would crawl back to him and forget about everything he has done to my family. Hell, there's even a chance that it's his fault that my parents are fighting all the time. And he thinks I'll take him back and act like nothing has happened?! Gee has the whole world gone wild or what?

And then I get this message from my daughter basically saying that it's my fault that she screwed up with Dean and that she hate's me and that I've been a horrible mother."

She stopped right in front of him.

"Let me tell you. I did everything for her. I put myself in the second spot. She always came first. I always thought about her first. I did everything so she didn't have to grow up in a home without love. I even crept back to my parents so she could go to an Ivy League school and have better chances than her mom had.

And oh yeah don't let me forget once again my parents are still involved because now they're paying for her college education, too. I hate going to those dinners. It creeps me out having to go to this house I ran away from, nineteen years ago in order to escape from all that and hoping I'd never have to return to it unless I truly wanted to. And now she storms out, telling me that she hate's me and that it's all my fault?! She's out of her mind."

Luke had just been sitting there listening to her yelling out her anger. Lorelai was panting when she stopped, trying to catch her breath.

"God that felt good." She said after a few moments.

Luke got up and pulled her into an embrace.

"Feeling better now?"

"A lot." She said into his shoulder.

"Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"Can we go for a walk?"

"Sure."

They put on their jackets and walked out into the cool summer evening. Their arms around each other they walked in silence for a while.

"Huh. This place seems to be magnetic or something," Lorelai said.

Without noticing they had ended up at the bridge again.

"Yeah, seems so."

They walked to the middle of the bridge and sat down their feet tangling over the water. Lorelai leaned her head on Luke's shoulder and Luke put his arm around her, trying to protect her from the cool summer air.

"Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about what happened back there."

Luke gently pulled her closer to him. "Don't be. You had to get that stuff out."

He looked down into her eyes and once again Lorelai was amazed about how much love they showed.

"You know, I was really getting worried about you. That stuff was tortoring you from the inside. I'm glad you led it out. You weren't yourself over the last couple of days. Which is totally understandable, but it scared me a little."

"I'm sorry, Luke." Lorelai gently kissed his lips.

"No. Don't be sorry. I'm glad you let me be a part of that. That really means a lot to me. It shows me that you really trust me."

Lorelai smiled at him. "I've always trusted you, Luke. You know that."

"Yeah, I know. But you trusted me as your friend, not as your boyfriend and best friend. There was always a little barrier between us, I'm glad it's not anymore."

"Me, too." A single tear ran down her cheek. "I love you, Luke."

Luke smiled at her and brushed the tear away. "I love you, too, Lorelai."

Lorelai sighed and rested her head back on his shoulder.

"I'm just scared it's not gonna be the same with Rory and me, when she gets back. I don't think we'll be this close again."

Luke gently kissed the top of her head. "I know you're scared. You just gotta give it time. You'll see, you'll be close again. It just needs some time."

"I hope you're right."

They sat on the bridge for a little while, watching the reflection of the moon in the lake, until Lorelai yawned slightly.

"Come on let's get you back home."

"Yeah, I'm getting kinda tired."

Luke helped her up and they walked back to Lorelai's house.

Lorelai felt Luke's discomfort when they had reached the door. Although they had been together for about two weeks and he had spent a lot of nights at her place he still felt uncomfortable because he didn't want to stay without her actually wanting him to.

Lorelai smiled at him. "Luke, I don't want you to go. You wanna stay here overnight?"

Luke smiled back at her. "Sure, I'd love to. I mean not that, you know…"

"I know don't worry."

Although Luke had spent many nights at her place nothing had ever happened. They knew that this relationship was something very special and they wanted it to be something special when it finally happened.

They walked inside and Lorelai got into the kitchen to get some water for her and Luke and then returned back into the living room.

"Hey Luke, you know the actually opening of the inn is next week and I was wondering if you would like to celebrate with us?"

"Yeah, I'd love to. I'm really excited for you guys. Thanks for asking me."

Lorelai hugged him tightly. "I couldn't think of anyone else I'd like to celebrate this day with."

Luke smiled and gently kissed her on the lips. "That's nice to hear, thanks."

"Your welcome." Lorelai said and kissed him back.

What she didn't tell Luke that she had made some arrangements with Sookie for some private time for the two of them.

To be continued….

Please review. I'll try to update as soon as my school schedule allows me to.


	8. preparing for the grand opening

**AN: Pheww, finally the next chapter is up. I'm sorry that it took me such a long time to update, high school finals are in january and I'm doing nothing but studying for school. I hope you enjoy the new chapter, it's longer than the last ones (and I also made some corrections on the first seven chapters)**

**Tell me what you think: reviews make me write faster :) **

Disclaimer: all of the characters belong to Amy Sherman Palladino and the WB

Chapter 8 

Lorelai woke up the next morning finding the space next to her empty. There was a note on the pillow next to her.

"Good morning, sunshine!

I didn't wanna wake you up this morning. I had to open the diner this morning. Come by later I'll have coffee and pancakes waiting for you.

Love you,

Luke

P.S.: You look beautiful sleeping."

Lorelai smiled to herself. Luke could be such a softy sometimes.

After taking a shower she got dressed and got on her way to Luke's. She heard someone call her name when she walked out the door.

"Lorelai, sweetie!" She saw Babette swiftly walking towards her.

"Oh, hey, Babette. How's it going?"

"Good, good."

"Good." There was a moment of silence between them.

"Well was there anything you wanted to ask me?" Lorelai directed at her.

"Well now that you're saying it. Was that Luke's truck in your driveway? He seems to be here more than usual. Is everything allright?"

Lorelai knew that Babette was suspecting something, but still hoped that she hadn't found out yet. "Uh, yeah. He's just keeping me some company, now that Rory's in Europe, that's all."

"Oh, I see." Babette said and winked at Lorelai.

Lorelai knew that the whole town would be talking about her and Luke in the next half hour.

"Uh, listen Babette. I really gotta get to work, I'm already late. And you know Michel, always giving me a hard time. Although I'm the boss, which he doesn't seem to care about. Anyway you have nice day, Babette."

Lorelai still had enough time left, but she didn't want Babette to pry her with any more questions.

"Allright, sugar. I don't wanna keep you from your work. You go and have an nice day, too." Babette said and grinned at Lorelai.

Lorelai waved to Babette and got into her jeep.

Babette ran back into her house yelling for her husband Morey. "Morey, come here. I gotta tell you something."

Lorelai smiled to herself and drove off towards the diner. She didn't care if the whole town was talking about her relationship with Luke. She loved Luke and was happy to show it to the whole world.

Luke looked out the window and saw Lorelai walking by the gazebo, where she had parked her car, towards the diner.

"I'll be right back, Ceasar," he yelled into the kitchen and ran outside.

Lorelai saw Luke walking swiftly towards her and smiled at him. Luke grinned back at her. He stopped in front of her.

"Hey, what's up?" Lorelai asked him.

"Not much. Just this," he pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately. After getting over the shock of Luke kissing her in the middle of the town square, Lorelai swung her arms around his neck and kissed him with as much passion as he was kissing her.

People who were walking by stopped after realizing who they saw making out by the gazebo, for everyone to see.

Luke slowly released Lorelai.

"Wow," Lorelai said out of breath.

"Yeah," Luke smirked at her.

"That was amazing. Let's do it again." Lorelai grinned at him and pulled him back into another kiss.

The people standing around them started whispering. Within a couple of minutes the whole town would know about the new and long awaited romance in town.

Miss Patty had watched the two lovebirds and was now about to call Babette and tell her to make sure it would get around town quickly.

Lorelai where totally oblivious to all the people gathering around them. Again they had to break apart for the need of oxygen.

Luke softly stroke over Lorelai's hair. "I love you," he said whispering in her ear. "And I didn't wanna hide my feelings for you anymore. I want every single person in this town to know how happy you make me feel.

Lorelai smiled, "I'm glad you feel that way. I love you, too," she said gently caressing his cheek.

By now some of the people were gathered in small groups while most of the people went back to their normal duties.

Luke put his arm around Lorelai and the walked back to the diner together.

"So you want some coffee?"

"Do you still have to ask?" Lorelai said grinning up at him.

Lorelai sat down on a stool at the counter while Luke poured her a cup of coffee.

"You want some pancakes?"

Lorelai nodded, "and eggs please … oh and bacon!" she yelled after him into the kitchen.

Luke came back outside and down next to Lorelai who dug into her breakfast.

"Charming," he said watching her eat her breakfast.

"Thanks," she grinned at him. "You should be used to my eating habits after so many years."

"True. So tomorrow's the grand opening."

"Yeah" Lorelai's expression turned a little sad knowing that Rory won't be there, celebrating with them.

Luke caught her expression and tried to think of something to cheer her up a little. "So do you still have a lot of work to do there or can we do a movie night, later."

Lorelai's expression lightened up. He always knew how to cheer her up. "That would be so great. Come by at seven? I should be done by then. Can you bring some food and a couple of movies?"

"Don't I always?"

"True."

Lorelai hopped of the chair and took some money out of her purse.

Luke started to protest but she said she didn't to give her everything for free since she's eating at the diner a lot.

"Ok, I'll see you tonight," she said and gave him a peck on the lips.

"Ok, bye," he pulled her back and kissed her a little longer, not caring about the costumers staring at them.

"Bye," she said with a huge smile and walked out of the diner.

Luke walked back into the kitchen whistling to himself feeling like the luckiest man on earth finally being together with the person he had loved for so many years now.

As soon as Lorelai arrived at the Dragonfly she walked straight into the kitchen to talk to Sookie about the last preparations for the grand opening of the Inn the following day.

"Hey Sookie, how's it going?"

"Hey. Great. Everything's fine, staff is doing well everything is pretty much prepared for the first real guests to arrive tomorrow."

"Good, good. I can't believe this is finally happening Sookie. Our own Inn, finally our dream has come true."

"I know, it's amazing we finally did it." Sookie said excitedly and embraced Lorelai in a big hug.

"So," Sookie started, "I heard about a fairly new couple getting pretty hot in the middle of the town square.

Lorelai gasped. "How do you know about this already?"

"So it's true!" Sookie said squealing. "How was it?"

Lorelai shyly grinned at her best friend. "It was amazing. You know, Luke and I had talked about not hiding our relationship and I thought he was kidding when he said that he could just kiss me in the town square so everyone would know about it, and then he actually did."

"I'm so happy for you. You two are just great together."

"Thanks, Sook. I'm really happy, too. I'd be even more happy if Rory would be here, too, but I guess you can't have everything at the same time, huh?!"

Sookie smiled at her sympathetically. "Oh, hon. I'm sure she'll be back soon, and then the two of you will work out whatever's gotten between you."

Lorelai sighed, "Yeah, Luke said that, too. I hope you guys are right. So is everything set for you know what, for tomorrow?"

Sookie knew that Lorelai didn't want to talk about Rory anymore and decided to let it go.

"Yes, everything's set for tomorrow, night. I allowed myself to put up some decorations, Derek is gonna be you're waiter and I'll make sure that no one's going to disturb you," she said winking at Lorelai.

"Thank you Sookie, I really appreciate it. I've planned this for a quite a while now I really want things to be special."

"I know, honey. It will be perfect trust me."

"Okay, good. I'm gonna go talk to Michel and see if the arrangements for our first guest are made, and I'm also gonna go check the rooms again if everything is in the right place."

"Ok, good. I'll have a meeting with the kitchen staff and the waiters later to see if everything is settled in her, but I think everything is exactly the way we wanted it to be. Don't worry about it, and try to get some rest, tonight."

"I will, Luke's coming over for a movie night. Bye Sook. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye, hon."

"Hey, Michel, is every…"

"Yes, everything is set for tomorrow," he told Lorelai in his French accent. "I told you before and I've already checked the rooms but of course you can do it again, which I'm sure you will cause you obviously don't trust my judgement."

"That's not true, Michel, well sometimes," she told him when he gave her one of his annoyed looks. "I just want to make sure that everything is going to be perfect for the grand opening. Ok, so you'll be here tomorrow morning than you can have lunch off, and take over again for tomorrow evening. And I'm telling you the torture is going to be bad if there is any…"

"Disturbance tomorrow evening when you and the…."

"Don't go any further, Michel. I've told you not to say anything bad about or to Luke, or the torture is going to be even worse."

"I know, I know," Michel said in his typical annoyed voice.

"Good. OK, will check the rooms now and then I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early", she said grinning at him.

A little after seven there was a knock at door.

"Who is it?" Lorelai yelled from inside the kitchen.

"It's me."

"Come in."

Luke entered the house and hung his coat on the rack in the hallway.

"Where are you?"

"Kitchen."

Luke walked into the kitchen seeing Lorelai rummaging in one of the cabinets.

"Hey, what are you doing there?"

"Uh, I thought I had some red vines left, but apparently I don't. You know, no proper movie night without a good variation of junk food."

"I know," Luke said, holding a paper bag up in front of her.

"What's this?" she asked, taking the bag from him.

"Well I thought you probably haven't had much time lately to go shopping so I stopped at Doosey's and got you some of your disgusting stuff.

"Oh my god, you did," she said peeking into the bag. "You really are the perfect man," she said and hugged him tightly.

"That's the word on the street," he said hugging her back.

Lorelai stood on her tiptoes and kissed him tenderly. "Hi."

"Hi." He said smiling down at her still holding her.

"So what did you bring? I'm starving!"

"Really, hadn't thought so," he said teasingly for which Lorelai smacked him lightly on the arm. "Well, I brought a double cheeseburger and fries for you, a veggie burger and a salad for me and some ice cream for the both of us. And movies, we got, Sleepless in Seattle and Dirty Dancing."

"Aww, really? But I thought you hate those movies?"

"I do, but you like them and I wanted you to have a good time tonight with all the stress you had over the last couple of weeks."

Lorelai kissed him softly. "Do you know just how much I love you?"

"I do," he said kissing her back, "I love you, too."

Lorelai gave him another peck on the lips. "Allright why don't you grab us some plates and a couple of beers out of the fridge and I'll go start the first movie."

"Allright."

"That was good," Lorelai said rubbing her belly after she had finished her burger and fries. "Hey you know what I'm gonna get out of these clothes, get a little more comfortable." She said walking upstairs into her room.

A couple of minutes later she came back downstairs, dressed in pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. "Hey, you want another beer?" she asked walking into the kitchen.

"Sure."

She came back into the living room and him his beer, taking a swig of her own while settling down on the couch next to him.

"Hey, so tell me what the plans are for tomorrow night," he said lightly padding her leg.

"Allright, you'll just come to the Dragonfly at around seven. I guess most of the guest will be down for dinner by then, I'll say a couple of words to them, you know being the first guest at the inn and stuff like that. And then… we'll have our own private dinner made by Sookie especially for us. Oh, and don't forget to bring you're overnight bag with you."

Luke nodded. "That sounds really nice. It's seems like yesterday that you showed me around the Inn telling what kinda stuff has to be done and what you wanna change about it, and now you're already having the grand opening."

Lorelai smiled at him, "I know, it's amazing. Thanks so much for helping us out Luke. We really couldn't have done it without you." Lorelai kissed him softly and pulled him into a hug.

"Nah, that's ok. I'm glad I was able to help. So, you wanna continue the movie?"

"Sure." She pressed the play button and lay down next to him with his arms holding her close to him and her arm on top of his.

About twenty minutes later, Lorelai had fallen asleep in his arms. He turned of the movie and gently took her into his arms carrying her upstairs, hoping not to wake her. He put her down on the bed and after taking his clothes of got into bed next to her. Lorelai snuggled closer to him. "I love you, Luke," she mumbled half asleep.

"I love you too, Lorelai."

**AN2: Allright guys that's it for this chapter. The next one will be about Lorelai's special plans for the grand opening, and hopefully will be up soon. Keep reviewing it makes me write faster. :)**


	9. the grand opening

Chapter 9 

**AN: Thanks so much for the wonderful reviews: LexiLoLo200, ProFfeSser, Janetmeca, Seuss, screaming truth, x.kromediva.x and ocdwithlhg . It makes writing so much better when people tell you what they think about it.**

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and the WB.

Rating: still PG-13

**OK, here we go:**

**Chapter 9 – The Grand Opening**

It was still early the next morning, when Luke woke up. Well, early for Lorelai, but not too early for him. He had asked Ceasar to open the diner, so he could be with Lorelai on the big day of the grand opening at the Dragonfly Inn. It was about six thirty and Lorelai had told him that she wanted to be at the Inn by nine in order to do a last check up on the rooms before the first guests would arrive at ten o'clock. He tried to untangle himself from the still sleeping Lorelai who was sprawled across his body.

"Where are you going?" she mumbled still asleep.

"Shh, go back to sleep, it's still early."

Lorelai pulled the cover back around her shoulders and had fallen asleep again as soon as he had left the room.

Luke walked downstairs and got himself a glass of orange juice. Then he made pancakes, scrambled eggs, toast and fresh coffee, put it on a tray along with some fruits and yogurt and walked back upstairs into Lorelai's bedroom.

He put the tray on the nightstand and slipped into bed, next to the sleeping Lorelai. A strand of hair had fallen over her face. He gently pushed it behind her ear and then kissed her softly on the forehead.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty, it's time to wake up," he gently whispered into her ear.

Lorelai slightly stirred.

"Mhmm, what time is it?" she said half asleep.

"It's almost seven o'clock."

"Ugh, why are you waking me at such an ungodly hour."

Luke had to smile about that comment. He knew how hard it was to get Lorelai out of bed. "First of all many people are awake at this time of the morning…"

"Ughh!"

"And second, just in case you forgot, today's the big day, the grand opening of the Dragonfly Inn. The Inn that you and Sookie had dreamed about for so many years and has finally come true."

"Right the Inn. Nope, didn't forget about that," she said a little more awake. "Is that coffee, I smell."

Luke smiled and held the freshly brewed coffee under her nose. "Yes it is. My specialty as you like to call it, but you have to open those beautiful eyes of yours if you want some."

Lorelai grabbed for the cup, but Luke held it out of her reach.

"God, you're mean, you know that?" she said squinting into the bright sunlight the shone through the curtains in her bedroom.

"Yeah, I know."

Lorelai punched him slightly on the arm. He caught her hand and pulled her into a long kiss.

"Morning," he whispered after they broke apart.

"Morning," she said smiling at him, "can I have some coffee now, please?"

"Sure here you go, and I also made some pancakes and scrambled eggs," he said setting the tray in front of them on the bed.

"Huh, I didn't know I had all that stuff in my fridge."

"Well, you didn't. I bought some stuff at the supermarket and stocked up your fridge."

"Ahh. Uh Luke, there's healthy stuff on that tray, you know I don't eat healthy stuff", she said with an unpleasant expression on her face.

"I know, I know, that stuff's for me. You know, some people actually eat that stuff that you despise so much."

"Freaks."

"One of them is sitting right in front of you…"

"Sorry hon. Thanks so much for all this stuff. You're such a sweetie you know that?" she softly kissed him.

"Your welcome. I just thought that you deserve a nice and calm breakfast on such an important day. And you probably won't have much time to eat till tonight so you gotta have a good breakfast."

"Aww, thanks, sweetie. Not just for this, for everything. You've been so patient with me over the last couple of weeks, I'm sure it wasn't always easy to be around me."

"That's ok, don't worry. Those last couple of weeks were really crazy and you've done really well dealing with all this stuff."

Lorelai leaned over to him and kissed him softly. "I love you, Luke."

"I love you, too."

"OK," Luke said, "let's have breakfast."

"Yeah, I'm starving."

"When aren't you?"

Lorelai nudged him softly in the side.

After they had finished eating Lorelai got out of bed and picked something to wear out of her closet. "Allright, sweetie, I really need to get ready for work now."

Lorelai walked back to the bed and kissed him softly. "Thanks for all this."

"You're welcome. I'll go clean up while you get ready."

"OK, thanks." She walked into the bathroom and took a shower while Luke cleaned up the dishes in the kitchen.

About forty-five minutes later Lorelai came back downstairs, dressed in black pants and a red blouse. Luke came out of the kitchen while Lorelai was checking her make-up in the hallway mirror.

"How do I look?" she asked, placing her arms around his waist, while Luke gently caressed her back.

"Beautiful, as always," he said smiling down at her. "So, when do you want me to get to the Dragonfly?"

"Mhmm, how about seven thirty? Most of the guest will be having dinner at that time and then Michel is gonna take over for me at the front desk."

"You still won't tell me what you planned for tonight, will you?"

Lorelai grinned at him. "Nope, just that I will be wearing something other than this. You'll just have to wait and see." Lorelai knew that Luke was curious about what she had planned for the evening but she also knew that he didn't want to show it.

"Allright, I guess I'll just have to wait till tonight."

"Yep, looks like it," she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him gently. Soon the kiss got more passionate than either of them had intended to. Luke slowly kissed a trail down her neck.

"Luke, this is not a good time for…" Luke silenced her with a kiss and then suddenly let go of her.

"Allright that should keep you thinking till tonight. Don't think you're the only one with the ability to drive people insane."

"Dirty."

"I know," he said grinning at her. "OK ready to go?"

"I guess so."

Luke helped her into her jacket and followed her outside to their cars. He opened the car door for her and kissed her once more before she got in.

"You nervous?"

"Yeah, a little."

"Don't be," Luke said reassuringly and patted her arm through the open window. "You'll do fine. You did great at the test run you'll be doing great tonight."

Lorelai pulled him towards her for a passionate kiss, which was not very easy to manage through the window.

"What was that for?" Luke said slightly out of breath after they broke apart.

"To keep you thinking till tonight," she said grinning at him, "and just for being you. I love you."

"I love you, too."

"So are you going back to the diner?"

"Yeah. I'll see you tonight," he said leaning in for a goodbye kiss.

"Yeah, see you tonight. Bye, sweetie."

"Bye."

Luke watched her drive off, got into his truck and drove to the diner to take a shower and help Ceasar and Lane since he was leaving the diner to them again that night.

**Later at the Dragonfly Inn**

Lorelai walked into the kitchen after most of the guest were seated at their dinner tables. Sookie and Michel where talking when Lorelai came in.

"Hey, guys, we did it. Everything was… is perfect today."

"I know isn't this great?" Sookie said beaming with happiness. "I knew we would make it!"

One of the waiters walked into the kitchen from the dining room.

"Hey, Derek. Could you please get each of our guests a glass of champagne and tell the staff members to come into the dining room for a sec? Oh and get them a glass, too, will ya?"

Derek nodded. "Sure, no problem Ms. Gilmore."

"Thanks."

Derek poured three glasses and handed them out to Lorelai, Sookie and Michel and then went back into the dining room with the champagne.

"All done," he said walking back into the kitchen after a few minutes.

"Thanks, come on, take your glassed and come with me."

Lorelai walked into the dining room area with Sookie, Michel and the whole kitchen staff following her, each one with a glass of champagne.

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have you attention for a few minutes?"

Luke walked into the lobby a little before seven thirty and stopped when he saw Lorelai. She looked radiant. Before dinner she had changed into a black dress that was accentuating her perfect figure in every right spot. He stood in the lobby and watched her talking to the guests, who had stopped eating and gave her their full attention.

"I just wanted to tell you how happy I am to see you here tonight. Uh, almost twenty years ago I moved to this lovely town with my two-year-old daughter and got a job at the Independence Inn, at the same time my now best friend Sookie St. James did." she said pointing at Sookie, "We became friends and soon we had this dream that one day we would run our own Inn." Lorelai brushed a tear out of her face and smiled at Sookie, who had to wipe away a few tears herself. "And now, today, after many months of renovation, and the help of many friends, our dream has finally come true. Thank you for being with us on this memorable day and once again a lovely welcome to the Dragonfly Inn."

Lorelai turned to Sookie and embraced her in a warm hug, while the guests and staff members applauded them.

Luke smiled at the scene, he was really happy for the two of them.

"Come on, guys, let's get back to work," Sookie said and walked into the kitchen, followed by her staff.

Lorelai walked into the lobby but stopped when she saw Luke standing there with flowers, all dressed up, in black pants, black jacket and a burgundy red shirt.

"Hi, handsome," she said getting her voice back.

"Hi, beauty, nice speech you gave there."

"You heard?"

"Yeah, and it was great."

"Thanks," she said stepping up to him, giving him a soft kiss on the lips.

Luke handed her the flowers. "Here, these are for you."

Lorelai took the flowers from him and took their sweet scent in. It was a bouquet of white lilies and tulips. Lorelai had to smile at the memory of the first time she got flowers from Luke.

Luke saw her smile, she remembered. "You like them?"

"I love them," Lorelai said with an even bigger smile.

Sookie had watched the two of them and told Derek to set everything up for them. At that moment Lorelai looked over to Sookie who gave her the thumbs-up.

"So what have you planned?" Luke asked her.

Lorelai turned back to him and smiled. "You have to wait a couple more minutes."

Michel walked into the lobby. "You are still here. I told you could leave."

"I know, we're outta here, and Michel, remember what I told you…"

"I know, I know," he interrupted her annoyed. "Just leave already."

Lorelai took Luke's hand a pulled him after her. "Come on let's go."

Lorelai led him out the front door of the Dragonfly and then to the stone pathway that led to the honeymoon bungalow.

"Where are you taking me, Lorelai?"

"You see."

The last fifty feet to the Bungalow were lit up with torchlights, producing a soft light. Lorelai stopped in front of the Bungalow.

**AN2: Allright guys. That's it for this chapter. I know I'm mean. You just have to write a lot of wonderful reviews and I will update this weekend. Remember reviews make me write a lot faster. :) **

**The next chapter is definitely gonna be about Lorelai's surprise for Luke.**


	10. Lorelai's surprise

**Chapter 10**

**AN: Waiting is over the big secret is gonna be revealed sorry that I kept it from you for another chapter. Thanks so much for the sweet reviews. Keep reviewing; it sure does make me write faster as you can see.**

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and the WB.

Rating: up to R

Here we go 

**Chapter 10- Lorelai's surprise**

_The last fifty feet to the Bungalow were lit up with torchlights, producing a soft light. Lorelai stopped in front of the Bungalow _and turned around to Luke.

"OK, close your eyes."

"What? Why do I have to close my eyes?"

"Stop being grumpy Luke. It's a surprise and you need to close your eyes cause otherwise it wouldn't be a surprise anymore. Please?" she gave him her puppy dogface, which she knew he wasn't able to resist.

"Allright," he sighed.

Lorelai took Luke's hand after making sure that his eyes were closed and opened the door to the bungalow. She dimmed the lights, closed the door behind them and stood back next to him.

"Okay, now you can open your eyes," she said beaming.

Luke opened his eyes and was taken aback. This was the first time he had ever been in this room, Lorelai had always told him that he wasn't allowed to see the room until it was completely decorated. Everything in the room was kept in red and brown tones and everything was decorated with white lilies and tulips. In short, it was beautiful.

"Well, what do you think?" she asked tugging slightly at his hand.

"Wow."

Lorelai grinned at him. "I'll take that as a compliment. I have chosen every little thing you can see in this room, cause I wanted it to be special and you are the first person who is allowed to see it, not even Sookie did."

Luke took one more look around and then looked down at her. "You did a great job, this is amazing."

Lorelai stood on her tiptoes and kissed him softly. "Thanks."

"So why didn't you let anyone see this before?"

"Well, see I wanted the first person to see this to be someone special and you are this someone special, and it's also a very special occasion tonight, because we are gonna celebrate our two months anniversary."

"I thought you'd forgotten about it with all this craziness over the last couple of weeks, so I didn't bring it up because I didn't want you to feel bad."

"Aww, Luke how can I forget such a special date? I'll never forget the moment you kissed me on the porch of the Dragonfly."

Lorelai stepped into his arms and held him tight. "I love you, Luke," she whispered into his ear.

"I love you, too, Lorelai." He bend down and kissed her gently with all the love he got when they were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"That's our dinner," Lorelai said when they broke apart.

Just at that moment Luke saw the table in the middle of the living room, decorated with a bouquet of white lilies and tulips and two red candles on each side.

Lorelai opened the door, while Luke took off his jacket. "Hey, Derek, come in."

Derek brought the cart with the food in and set two plates of penne with pesto and the table, took a carafe of red wine and poured some whine and also some water into the glasses on the table.

"Would you like me to put the dessert into the refrigerator, Ms. Gilmore?"

"That would be great, thanks, Derek."

Derek put the dessert into the fridge and walked back to the door. Lorelai opened it for him and gave him a tip. "Make sure there won't be any disturbance, Derek, otherwise your job might be in danger," she said with a wink.

"Don't worry," he said smiling at her.

After hanging the "Do not disturb" sign outside, Lorelai locked the door behind Derek and turned around to Luke.

"So, I hope you're hungry…" Lorelai said walking to the table.

"Actually, I am." He said pulling out the chair for Lorelai and then sat down on the opposite side of the table.

"Me too, man this looks great. Sookie did a great job, she didn't wanna tell me what she was making for us."

"Well, it looks great," Luke took his glass, "here's to two wonderful months and many more."

Lorelai smiled, there was the softy again. "Couldn't have said it better," she replied when they clinked their glasses together.

That was one of the many things Lorelai had noticed about Luke over the last couple of months. Luke was so different towards her than he was to anyone else. He was more of his true self when he was around her and he was glad that he finally had someone he didn't have to hide anything from or explain himself to. They had developed a very special relationship over the last couple of years, which neither of them would want to miss.

Over dinner they talked about the things that had happened during their day and simply enjoyed the other's presence.

"Dinner was great," Luke said when he put down his fork.

"I know, and there's more in the fridge, I'll go get, I'm sure Sookie remembered to make some healthy stuff for you," she said grinning at him.

"I wouldn't mind some real dessert."

"Who are you and what have you done to my 'I don't like unhealthy stuff' boyfriend?" Lorelai said in a shocked voice.

Luke had to chuckle at that comment. "I didn't say I don't like sweets or stuff like that. I just don't have to have it every single day like you do."

"Wow, Mr. Danes, there's a whole new side to you that I haven't had the pleasure to experience yet."

"I know, you'll just have to wait and see," he said smirking at her.

Another thing she loved so much about him. Even though they had known each other for such a long time there were still so many things she didn't know about him, that were revealed bit by bit after they had started dating.

Lorelai took the plates from the table, brought them into the kitchen area and took a plate and a small bowl out of the fridge. "Ohh, tiramisu, Sookie really knows how to make a girl happy… and strawberries. See told you so. Although I kinda like strawberries, too."

She took two dessert forks out of a drawer, brought everything back to the table and set it between them. She handed Luke a fork and sat back down.

"Mhmm, you gotta try this," she said and held out a forkful of tiramisu for him to taste.

"Yeah, it's great."

They continued feeding each other small bites of tiramisu. Luke just loved looking at her being happy about something simple like tiramisu. She didn't need anything big to make her happy, it was the little things that made her happy.

Luke reached into his pocket and pulled a thin and long velvet case out of it. He placed it in front of Lorelai and waited for her reaction.

"Luke, what…"

"I wanted to give this to you for the grand opening because I wasn't sure if you would remember our anniversary, but now that you do, I can tell you that I got it for you for our anniversary."

Lorelai opened the case and was taken aback. Inside she found a beautiful golden necklace with a heart shaped pendant and a small diamond in it.

"Oh my god, Luke this is… you shouldn't buy me such expensive things."

"Don't worry, I hardly ever buy anything for myself and now I have someone special I can buy special gifts for."

Lorelai walked over to Luke and sat down on his lap. "Thank you," she said and kissed him gently.

"You're welcome." He caressed her cheek with one hand. "I just want you to know how happy I am to be with you and how proud I am. You did such a great job with the Inn, but not just the Inn, with everything, you are the most amazing woman I've ever met, Lorelai and I don't know if I can express to you how much I love you."

A single tear made it's way down her cheeks. "Well, just bring a couple more of these," she said making him laugh. Always the funny one, he thought to himself. "No just kidding. You don't have to buy me anything. For you to be with me is all I really need, I don't need anything else."

"Well, you got me," he said brushing a few more tears from her cheek.

He pulled her to him and kissed her. Lorelai put her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss by parting his lips with her tongue. Their tongues gently swirled around each other and soon their kisses became more passionate and heated up. Lorelai shifted on his lap, which made a soft moan escape his throat.

He unwillingly broke the kiss, "Lorelai…"

Lorelai silenced him with another passionate kiss. "Shh, it's ok."

"Are you sure?" he asked her between soft kisses.

Lorelai looked deep into his eyes. "I'm sure Luke. I wanted this to be something special and tonight is special Luke. I've never had such a relationship with someone else and I didn't want to ruin it by jumping under the sheets immediately. I've been planning this for over a month because I wanted to show you how special I feel about us."

Now Luke was the one who was speechless.

"I really love you from the bottom of my heart, Luke."

Luke pulled her into an embrace "I love you, too, Lorelai. I truly do."

Lorelai gave him a short kiss and got out of his lap. "Just give me two minutes," she said disappearing into the bedroom.

Lorelai put some slow piano tunes into the CD player and lit the candles that were set up in the room. She had just turned off the light when Luke gently knocked on the door.

"Can I come in?"

Lorelai opened the door and pulled him inside.

The bedroom was kept in the same colors as the rest of the suite with and old, wooden king size bed centred at the back wall of the room. There was a big window that led onto the terrace in the back with heavy red curtains that had simple embroidery in a darker red on it.

"This room is beautiful, Lorelai."

"Thanks," she said smiling at him and stepped closer.

Luke noticed that she had taken her heels off, which made her fit perfectly under his gin.

Lorelai placed her arms around his neck, "so where were we."

Luke bent down and smiled at her. "I think right here," he said and kissed her.

This time Luke was the one to deepen their kiss by sliding his tongue over her lower lip asking for entrance, which she gladly granted. He positioned a soft kiss right under her earlobe, making her shiver slightly. He continued to kiss a trail down the side of her to the spot where neck connected with her shoulder. Lorelai softly moaned at his kisses.

She managed to slowly unbutton his shirt and placed a kiss on every spot of skin she uncovered. Luke pulled her back into a passionate kiss when she was done with the buttons of his shirt and had slipped it off of his strong and slender shoulders. Luke reached behind her and slowly unzipped her dress. He slid it down her shoulders and revealed a red negligee that left little to imagination, showing off her beautiful figure in every right spot. He stepped back and admired her stunning resemblance.

"Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?"

"Yes, you have but I still love hearing it, so better don't stop telling me."

"You are just amazing." He told her making her blush slightly.

She pulled him into another kiss and managed to unbuckle his pants and let them slide down to his ankles. He stepped out of his pants, shortly breaking the kiss to take off his shoes and socks, and pulled her back towards him. Left in their underwear, Luke slowly walked her back to the bed. He reached for the straps of her negligee and looked into her eyes asking her for permission. She kissed him instead of giving him an answer and then the rest of her body was exposed to him. He gently pushed her down on the bed and started kissing a trail down her neck to her breasts. He gently swirled his tongue around the nipple of her left breast caressing the other one with his free hand. Lorelai moaned at the contact. He moved to her other breast repeating the procedure kissing a trail of kisses down to her belly button. Lorelai started to get impatient she had waited so long for this, she couldn't wait to be with him completely. She pulled him back up and kissed him fervently.

"Luke, please, I want to feel you… I don't wanna wait any longer."

Luke placed a soft kiss on her lips. "I don't either. I just need to…"

"It's ok, I'm on the pill."

Luke nodded and crawled off the bed while Lorelai pulled back the covers and then looked back up at him, standing there in all his gorgeousness. Lorelai couldn't take her eyes off of his well-toned body, which wasn't really showing off under all the flannel he was usually wearing.

"Come here, diner boy," she said grinning at him.

Luke crawled back onto the bed and was pulled into another passionate kiss by Lorelai. Just as she was parting his lips with her tongue, he slipped into her wetness making both of them moan at the sensation.

"Oh, god, Luke. I love you so much."

He slowly started to move inside of her enjoying the sensation of feeling her this close after such a long time of waiting.

" I love you, too, Lorelai."

They soon fell into a steady rhythm both of them capturing their newfound way of expressing their feelings for each other. Luke felt her getting close to her climax and sped up his movement a little. They both reached their climax at the same, making them moan out loud with pleasure. Luke wanted to roll off her because he was afraid to crush her but Lorelai held him close.

"Wait, not yet. I just wanna capture this feeling a little longer."

Luke gently kissed her neck. He rolled over on his back, pulling her with him so that she was sprawled across his body.

"Wow." He said gently stroking he back.

"I know, this was amazing," she said grinning at him. "I mean I've never felt like this before, with anyone else."

"Me either," he said gently kissing her forehead.

Lorelai gently caressed his chest. "I can't believe that we've come this far. Am glad you made a move I don't know if I would have had the guts to do it."

"Well I just couldn't stand the idea of you being with someone else, and I figured that I didn't really have to loose anything. Well actually I had some help with that."

Lorelai looked at him curiously "What?"

"Well, do you remember the books you found in Jess's bag pack?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah, I do. Wait a minute…"

"Yep, he got them from me. That's why I kinda barked at you when you told me you had found them."

"Oh, god, Luke. I'm sorry that I made fun of it. I guess they actually do help people. I'm glad you got them."

"It's allright, I'm glad I got them, too. I love you."

"I love you, too," Lorelai said already drifting of to sleep.

Luke pulled the covers up around them and soon joined her, falling asleep with a smile across his face.

**AN2: Pheww, that was some chapter to write. Please review. As always reviews make me write faster. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, the next one should be up soon.**


	11. the morning after

Chapter 11 

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and the WB.

Rating: up to R

**AN: I know it's been a while again, this chapter took me longer than I thought it would, I hope it was worth waiting. Thanks so much for the sweet reviews; Mimimoon, danagabrielle, Janetmaca, Ruli, iheartchicago, ProFfeSseR and "guess who finally kept her promise… :), you guys make writing so much fun. **

Here it is…

**Chapter 11 – The morning after**

The next morning...

Lorelai woke up with a smile on her face. She noticed that Luke was still asleep when she looked up at him. Still in his arms she drew little circles on his chest with her index finger. Luke started to smile and stirred in his sleep. Lorelai started to kiss him softly. Luke smiled through her kisses and deepened them by pulling her closer so she was partially lying on top of him.

"Hi," he said smiling at her sleepy when they broke apart.

"Hi, yourself, sleepyhead."

Luke yawned, "What time is it?"

Luke looked at the nightstand over his shoulder. "Eight-thirtyish. Wow you really slept in.

I wore you out, huh?"

"I like sleeping in when I have such a beautiful woman lying next to me in bed."

Lorelai smiled and leaned up to kiss him again, when there was a knock on the door.

"Uh, I told them not to disturb us."

"Don't worry, I'll get it," Luke said getting out of bed. Lorelai smiled when she saw him walking away only in his boxers.

Luke opened the door to find a tray with all sorts of goodies for breakfast.

"Who was it?" Lorelai asked when he came walking back into the bedroom.

"Just found this, did you order room service?" he asked her setting the tray down on the bed between them and crawled back under the covers.

"No. But the there's a card. To Lorelai and Luke. It says 'I hope you guys had a great time :), Love Sookie.' Aww that is so sweet."

Luke nodded, "Yeah it is. So you hungry?" he asked her.

"Do you have to ask? Ok we have pancakes, croissants, cereals, fruits." Lorelai took a strawberry and offered it to Luke.

Luke grinned at her leaned forward and took a bite of the strawberry, slightly brushing her finger with his lips, making her shiver slightly.

"Mhmm, I want pancakes first."

Luke took a piece of pancake and fed I to her.

"I could get used to this…"

"To what?" Luke said with a smile.

"Waking up next to you, you feeding me breakfast in bed. A girl couldn't wish for anything else."

"I like that, too, but apparently we have to get ready for work soon, even if we might not like it."

Lorelai wrinkled her nose, "did you have to mention work? Let's just enjoy the rest of our time together."

"Yeah, you're right, sorry." Luke leaned over and kissed her softly. "Forgive me?"

"You have to do a little more than that." Lorelai said with a smirk.

Luke leaned forward again and kissed her a little more passionately.

"Better?"

Lorelai smiled at him, "much better."

After having finished their breakfast Luke put the tray on the floor and lay back in bed. Lorelai put her head on his chest and entwined her fingers with his while he was softly stroking her hair with his free hand.

"You happy?" Luke asked her softly.

"I'm very happy. We had a wonderful date, an even more wonderful night," she said grinning up at him, "great food, nothing more to wish for right now."

Lorelai raised her head for a gentle kiss. "Are you happy?"

Luke smiled down at her and kissed her a little deeper. "Very. Actually, I don't think I've been this happy in a long time."

Lorelai turned in his arms, resting her arm on his chest and looking directly in his eyes. "Are you serious?"

Luke sat up straight and pulled her in his lap. "Yes, totally," he said holding her tight. "I've never been this happy with anyone else before, not with Rachel, and certainly not with Nicole. I've been hoping for this for so many years, and the fact that it finally came true makes me the happiest guy in the world."

Small tears had formed in Lorelai's eyes, "You have no idea how sweet that was. I love you so much, Luke."

"I love you, too, Lorelai." He brushed a few tears out of her face and pulled her into a passionate kiss.

They sat like this for a few more minutes, simply enjoying their closeness.

"I hate to ruin this moment, Luke, but I think we have to get ready. I don't want Sookie to freak out, while having to run the whole place without me."

"Didn't you say, Michel was there, too?" Luke shook his head. "Sorry, dumb question, Michel's no help, is he?"

Lorelai shook her head, laughing. "Not if I'm not there to kick his butt. So … why don't you go take a shower, while I clean up the place a little bit and then I can go take one after you."

"Why don't you go take a shower, while I'll clean up the place. I can take a shower when I get back to the diner."

Lorelai gently put her hand on his bare chest. "Are you sure? You wouldn't mind?"

Luke shook his head and gave her a peck on the lips. "No, that's fine, go ahead."

"You're the sweetest guy ever, did you know that?" Lorelai said getting up from the bed.

"Yeah, I know but don't tell anyone." He said smiling at her.

Lorelai laughed and disappeared into the bathroom.

About half an hour later Lorelai came out of the bathroom dressed in dark brown pants and a red blouse.

Luke had cleaned up a little and changed into a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt.

"What, no baseball cap, Mr. backwards baseball cap?"

"Nope. Forgot it at my place."

"Ahh. Thanks for cleaning up a little. Ready to go?"

Luke looked around the place once more, checking if they had forgotten something. "No problem and yeah I'm ready to go. I put your stuff in your bag."

"Thanks," Lorelai said reaching for her bag.

"I got it. You just lock up the place."

Lorelai smiled at him. Again she was amazed at how different Luke was around her. He wasn't grumpy Luke at all. He was sweet, loving and totally gentleman Luke, and she had to admit that she like this Luke much better than the grumpy Luke.

They walked to the door together, but before Lorelai could reach for the doorknob, Luke had pulled her to him and captured her lips in a passionate kiss. Lorelai slung her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss. She gently brushed his lips with her tongue asking for entrance, which he gladly granted. He dropped their bags on the floor and pressed her body against the door letting his hands roam her body. A soft moan, escaping from her lips made him deepen the kiss even more. After a few minutes they broke apart panting for air.

"What was that all about?" she asked, still trying to catch her breath.

Luke smirked at her, gently stroking her side with the back of his hand, sending shivers all over her body. "Just a spontaneous 'thank you'."

"Who had thought, grumpy old Luke could be that spontaneous?" she said smirking back at him. "I like the spontaneous Luke."

"Me, too," he said kissing her. "Ready?"

Lorelai nodded and turned to open the door. "Yep, ready."

They walked back to the front entrance of the Dragonfly Inn holding hands and smiling at each other occasionally.

"Now everyone will know what we did last when they see us grinning like this." Lorelai said laughing.

"So what? We're adults, they know we wouldn't just be holding hands for the rest of our lives. I don't care what they think."

"Good to hear." Lorelai said still smiling when they walked into the lobby of the Dragonfly. She stopped abruptly, causing Luke to slightly bump into her, when she saw who was sitting in the lobby in one of the big armchairs…

TBC

**AN: Well what do think? Sorry, this one was a little on the short side. The next one will be longer again. Remember: Reviewing makes me write a lot faster. The next chapter might even be up tomorrow or the day after that. The more you review you the faster you'll know who the person is sitting in the lobby. Any ideas? You'll see.**


	12. finally

Chapter 12 

**AN: Allright people. Let's reveal who the mysterious person is. Thanks again for the sweet reviews. I know I can be evil sometimes, Mimimoon :) and thanks again to ProFfeSseR, who I can always count on to read my updates; I guess you were wrong Niccole; was that your guess, Javababe?**

**Well thanks for reviewing!**

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and the WB.

Rating: PG-13

"Rory," she said almost inaudible.

"Mom!" Rory jumped up and ran into her mother's arms hugging her tightly. "I'm so so so sorry, for running away like this."

"It's ok, hon. It's ok." She whispered into Rory's ear, hugging her back just as tight, a single tear escaping her eye. She finally had her daughter back. At least she was hoping she did.

Luke had watched the scene from a few steps away. He knew they would be ok. Maybe not completely right now but they would work it out. "I'll talk to you later," he said slightly whispering to Lorelai, who nodded at him.

"I'll call you," she whispered back to him, still holding her daughter in her arms.

Luke nodded his head and went outside to his truck, heading back to the diner.

Back inside the Dragonfly…

"I'm sorry, Mom, I really am." Rory told her mom with a few tears rolling down her cheeks.

"It's ok, hon. I'm glad you're back and we can work everything out."

Rory nodded. "Can we go home please?"

"Sure, sweetie. I'll just go tell Sookie. Why don't you wait outside in the truck."

"Ok." Lorelai gave her the keys and she went outside to the car while Lorelai walked to the kitchen.

"Hey, Sookie."

"Ohh, Lorelai, you're back!" Sookie said running over to her best friend. "How was it? You gotta tell me everything? Ohh, I'm so happy for you guys!" she said jumping up and down with excitement.

"It was… perfect." Lorelai said with a dreamy smile.

"Oh I'm so happy for you." Sookie saw the somewhat sad look on Lorelai's face. "Oh, no. Did something happen. You guys didn't break up, did you?" she touched Lorelai's arm with a concerned look on her face.

"No, Sookie, we didn't break up, we've never been this happy before."

"Oh, good. That wouldn't have made sense the way you two are all over each other."

Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"But what's with the face then?"

Lorelai took a deep breath. "Rory's back. She's outside waiting in the car. She was waiting for me in the lobby.

"Oh." Her best friend said in an understanding tone.

"And she saw Luke and me holding hands."

"Oh."

"And that's why I'm here. I need you to take care of the Inn for a while longer, so I can take her home and talk to her." Lorelai said in a slightly begging voice.

"Oh sure. You'll go take her home. I have everything under control. Take as much time as you need, no reason to worry."

"Really?"

"Of course," she said hugging Lorelai. "You'll be okay." She added, sensing Lorelai's concerns about Rory.

Lorelai nodded, putting on a sad smile. "I'll see ya."

"Yeah, bye. Say hi to Rory."

"I will." And with that she turned to face a long day of talking.

The ride home was quiet and somewhat uncomfortable.

As soon as the car had stopped Rory got out of the car, and went straight to her room.

Lorelai sighed and followed her leaving her keys in the hallway.

She softly knocked on the door and poked her head through the slightly ajar door. Rory was walking around her room putting her stuff from the trip away.

"Hey can I come in?" Lorelai softly asked.

Rory opened the door and motioned for her to come in. Lorelai sat down on the bed, watching her putting her things away.

"Rory," she said after a few more minutes of silence. Rory stopped and looked over to her mother.

Lorelai patted the sheets next to her. "Come, sit with me."

Rory sighed. She walked over to the bed and sat down next to Lorelai.

"Please, talk to me, Rory." Lorelai said, putting an arm around her daughter's shoulder.

But instead of answering, Rory threw her arms around her mom's neck and started to sob hard into her mom's shoulder. Lorelai pulled her close to her body. Rory pulled up her legs to her side and laid her head on Lorelai's lap. Lorelai started to rock her back and forth gently, murmuring comforting words to her, while softly stroking her head, hoping she could take away some of her pain. She was relieved that Rory let her comfort her.

Their position reminded Lorelai of Rory's childhood, where she used to comfort Rory in the same position they were in now, except that Rory had been much smaller and was able to fit in her lap completely.

After what seemed like a long time Rory's sobs started to ease and her breathing became more even. After a few more minutes Rory took a deep breath and sat up. She took her shoes off and sat cross-legged on her bed facing her mom, who did the same.

"Feeling a little better now?" Lorelai asked smiling at her daughter.

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that."

Lorelai took Rory's hand in hers. "No need to be sorry, that had to come out eventually, and if it makes you feel better it's even more ok."

Rory took a deep breath. "Mom, I need you to listen to me."

"Ok, no problem, sweetie." Lorelai said.

"But please let me finish before you say anything, I need to get this out, ok?"

"Sure, I'm listening."

After taking another deep breath Rory started, "I'm really sorry that I ran away like this. And I'm sorry about the fight we had. But I'm not a little kid anymore, I'm definitely capable of making my own decisions, even if they might not always be the best decisions. I talked to grandma a lot on our trip and I know what Dean and I did was wrong and that we shouldn't have slept together. I know that know, but we can't change it anymore. I wrote a long letter to Dean, telling him that he should try to work things out with Lindsey, and that I'm sorry about what happened. I told him that I don't regret it, because it was the best first time I could have imagined."

Lorelai flinched a little at her words but kept quiet.

"But I also told him that I see no future for us. I'm always gonna love him as my first real love, but nothing more, and that I hope we can be friends someday in the future, but not right now, not with everything that's happened between us during the last couple of months."

Lorelai was speechless. She had expected many things to hear from her daughter but not something like this.

Rory looked at her a little uncertain. "Mom, say something."

"Sorry," Lorelai said still a little in awe. "I wasn't expecting that."

"Will you forgive me?"

Lorelai pulled her into a tight hug. "Oh, honey. There's nothing to forgive about. We had a fight, so what? Wasn't the first one."

She pulled back and looked into her daughter's relieved eyes.

"I'm glad you were able to think about this on your own, and I have to admit I'm glad about you're decision. You just need to let some time pass and then maybe you and Dean can talk about what happened. So you don't hate me?"

Rory shook her head forcefully. "I could never hate you, Mom. I'm sorry I said that stuff to you. I love you, Mom."

"I love you, too, honey." She said pulling her daughter into another hug, " and I'm glad you don't hate me."

"So how about some pizza? And you gotta tell me everything about Europe. I'm sure my Mom took you to some really fancy places."

Rory grinned at her mom. "Yeah let's get some pizza. You're right she did, 'only the finest places for the finest girls', she kept saying all the time."

They both had to laugh about that.

Lorelai got up and went to get her purse in the kitchen, "why don't you go to Al's pancake world and get a pizza and I'll have everything set up when you get back?"

"Allright sounds good," Rory said taking the money from her mom. Lorelai walked into the living room when there was a knock on the front door.

"I'll get it." Rory said and went to open the door.

"Luke, hi, what are you doing here?"

Lorelai froze in her tracks and went into the hallway.

"Hey, Luke what are you doing here?"

Luke seemed a little uncomfortable.

"Uh, I thought that the two of you could use some food," he said holding up two bags from Luke's diner.

"Great, that's even better than pizza," Rory said and took the bags from him bringing them into the living room.

"Does she know?" Luke whispered to Lorelai.

"No, not yet. I think we should tell her together."

"Ok," Luke stared at her realizing her plan. "What now?" he said in disbelieve.

"Yeah, why not." Lorelai said shrugging her shoulders.

"Do you, I mean, do you think now is the right time?"

"I'm not sure if there'll ever be 'the' right time, so why not tell her now?" she said taking his hand in hers and pulling him into the house.

"Ok, if you say so." He said closing the door behind him.

Lorelai gave him a peck on the lips. "Come on."

They walked into the living room still holding hands. Rory was setting the food on the table when she saw them coming in. "Hey, Luke, why don't you stay and have dinner with us? Would that be ok, Mom?"

"Sure, hon. Uhh, but I think we need to talk about something first, before we can have dinner."

Rory looked at them a litlle surprised. "Sure, what it is?" At that moment Rory saw their entwined fingers. "Oh." She said in a small voice.

Lorelai let go off Luke's hand and took a few steps forward. "The night of the test run, when I came back here I wanted to tell you something. That was before…, well you know."

Rory nodded her head slowly still looking at her mom, glancing over to Luke occasionally. He was still standing in the same spot with his hands stuffed into his pockets looking a little uncomfortable with the situation.

"Well what I wanted to tell you," Lorelai continued, drawing Rory's attention back to her, "was that Luke and I had kissed on the porch."

Rory sat down on the armrest of the couch. "That's not it, right?"

"No. Remember when I told you I thought I was dating Luke?"

Rory nodded her head slightly.

"Well, if we weren't back then, we are definitely now."

Rory kept quiet for a few moments letting the information sink in. Lorelai shot a concerned look over to Luke and then back to Rory.

"Rory, hon, say something, please?"

Rory looked at Luke and then at her mom. "Are you happy?"

Lorelai nodded with a smile. "Very."

Rory looked over to Luke. "Yeah, me, too." He said taking a step forward.

"Good, then I'm happy, too."

Lorelai's smile grew even wider. "You are?"

"Yes, I'm glad the two of you finally got a grip on yourselves and admitted you're feelings for each other." Rory hugged her mom and then went over and gave Luke a hug, too, who seemed a little uncomfortable at first but then returned the hug.

"So now that that's out of the way, why don't we sit down and have dinner?" Lorelai said.

"Yeah, sure." Rory said sitting down on the floor in front of the couch.

"Luke?" Lorelai turned to him. "Can you stay?"

"Uh, sure I guess. I told Ceasar to close up anyway."

"Great, then I'll just go get some drinks."

"I'll help you." Luke said walking into the kitchen after Lorelai.

"Get me a coke, will ya?" Rory called from the living room.

"Sure, hon." Lorelai called back from the kitchen and went to the fridge to get the drinks.

"Do you want a beer, sweets?"

"Uh, sure." He said stepping behind her. He took the drinks from her and put them on the kitchen table.

She slung her arms around his waist and put her head on his chest. "See, everything went fine."

"I know. Although I was a little scared there for a moment." He said gently stroking over her hair.

"Yeah, me too. But I'm glad we told her. I don't wanna hide anything from her."

"I don't either."

"I love you," Lorelai said looking up into his eyes.

Luke bent down and gave her a gentle kiss. "I love you, too." He said when they broke apart.

Lorelai put her hand on his neck and pulled him down into another more passionate kiss. Luke allowed her tongue to tangle his own and slightly pushed her against the fridge, deepening the kiss.

"Stop the making out, and come in here so we can start watching the movie." Rory called from the living room.

They broke apart panting. Lorelai grinned at him. She took the drinks and walked into the living room followed by a slightly red Luke.

Rory had to laugh when she saw his embarrassed face.

Luke and Lorelai settled down on the couch while Rory was sitting in front of it, each of them enjoying their meal."

"Two Weeks Notice, great choice hon", Lorelai said happily watching her two favorite people in the world.

TBC

**AN2: Allright that's it for now. Hope you liked it. I promised it would be a longer one again. Who was right with guessing the person sitting in the lobby? Well, as always, reviewing makes me write a lot faster, so keep the reviews coming!!**


	13. the fight

Chapter 13- the fight 

**A/N: I'm soo sorry that it took me so long to update. I'm in the middle of finals, but I'll be done next week and then the next chapter will be up by the weekend.**

**Thanks so much for your sweet reviews. I thought that a lot of you had forgotten about Rory. :)**

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Chapter 13 - the fight 

Lorelai had moved closer to Luke when they were done eating and Luke had put his arm around her shoulder.

Rory smiled when she saw how comfortable they had become with each other. She had always hoped that someday her mother would accept her feelings for Luke and see what every other person in town had seen between the two of them for years.

**Later that evening….**

By the end of the movie Lorelai had fallen asleep. She was lying on the couch next to Luke with her head on a pillow, she had put on Luke's legs. Rory took the movie out of the VCR and put it back on the shelf with the rest of their movie collection. She turned back to the couch and again had to smile at the scene in front of her.

"I can't believe she fell a sleep during such a great mocking-movie."

"Yeah, well, I guess it's been a little too much action for her today."

Luke tried to get up without waking Lorelai. "I guess I should get going."

"You don't have to leave because of me, Luke, really!"

"Are you sure? 'Cause I don't mind."

"Yeah, I'm sure." Rory said cleaning up the mess on the couch table. "Why don't you get her upstairs and I'll clean up down here. I'm not really tired. I'm still on European time."

"Allright, if you really don't mind."

"No, go ahead."

Luke gently touched Lorelai's face. "Hey, sleepyhead, time to get to bed."

Lorelai frowned but didn't move. "Can't move, to tired."

Luke sighed and pulled her on his lap. She mumbled something into his neck and then put her arms around his neck. He put his arms securely around her and got up, making his way to the stairs.

"Luke?"

"Yeah?" he said, turning around to face Rory.

"I'm glad you guys finally came to your senses." Rory said smiling at him.

"Me, too," he said smiling back at her. "Night, Rory."

"Night, Luke." Rory said walking into the kitchen while Luke made his way up the stairs with the sleeping Lorelai in his arms.

He walked through the already open door into Lorelai's bedroom and gently put her down on her side of the bed. He was glad that Lorelai had changed into some pyjama pants and long sleeve shirt earlier, which spared him from changing her clothes. Changing her clothes probably would have meant for her to wake up and then he would have to deal with a cranky Lorelai, which wasn't his all time favourite thing to do.

Luke undressed but left his boxers on and climbed into bed next to Lorelai, pulling the covers over both of them. Lorelai immediately moved closer to him and put her head on his chest. Luke put on arm around her and rested the other one on hers.

He softly kissed the top of her head. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she said and placed a gentle kiss on his soft chest.

"Hey I thought you were a sleep."

"I was until now." She replied in a sleepy voice. "Did you carry me up here?"

"Yep."

"Mhmm, why didn't you wake me? I could've walked you know."

"I tried," Luke said in a chuckle. "You said you were too tired to walk and fell back asleep right away."

"Sorry." Lorelai said smiling up at him.

"It's ok," Luke bend down for a kiss. "I don't mind. I like having you in my arms."

Lorelai gave him another kiss. "I like being in your arms, but I enjoy it much more when I'm awake and in your arms, like I am right now."

"I love you."

"I love you, too, babe. So do you have to open the diner, tomorrow?"

"No, Ceasar is opening up."

Lorelai smiled. "Sweet. Night, Luke."

"You ok?"

Lorelai know exactly what he was talking about.

"I'm feeling much better about the situation than I was a couple of weeks ago but I'm still hurt. It's just gonna take a while."

Luke kissed the top of her head. "I know, just checkin'. You know I'm always there for you."

"I know, hon, and that's just one more reason for me to love you."

"I love you, too. 'Night, hon." Luke leaned down for another sweet kiss.

"Night." Lorelai loved the fact that he was calling her hon, not that much in public, but he was slowly getting used to showing his affection for her in public.

Lorelai gently kissed his chest again and then put her head back on it falling asleep within a few minutes.

Luke smiled and soon followed her into dreamland.

**The next morning….**

The smell of bacon and fresh coffee made it's way into Rory's room and woke her up. She smiled and slowly crawled out of her bed putting her robe on.

Luke turned around and smiled at her. "Hey! I was wondering which one of you would wake up first at the smell of coffee and breakfast."

Rory sat down and took the cup of coffee Luke was holding out to her.

"Yeah, it's doesn't happen very often that I get woken up by the smell of breakfast in our kitchen. At least not freshly made," she said smiling back at him still a little sleepy.

"It should be done in a couple of minutes."

Rory took a sip of her coffee and smiled. "God, how I missed your coffee."

"Well there's always gotta be something that you can only get a home," Luke said sitting down on the other side of the table. "So, I guess you and your mom made up, huh?"

"I thought she would tell you." Rory said looking down at the table.

"I was with her when she found the letter and she talked to me about what had happened, but she didn't tell anyone else."

Rory nodded. "I really hurt her, didn't I?"

Luke nodded. "But, your mom's a really strong woman, you know. She's been through a lot more."

"I never meant to hurt her feelings. I'm so sorry about what happened."

Luke smiled at her sympathetically. "She knows, and you don't have to explain yourself to me, Rory. But, you know, if there's anything you wanna talk about, I'm always there for you."

Rory smiled at him. "I know, and thanks. For everything. For being there for me and for mom, for taking care of her the way you do."

Luke looked down on the table. "It's ok, I'm glad to be there for you guys. You mean a lot to me. Both of you."

"Ahh my two favorite people in the world." Lorelai said walking into the kitchen. "I thought I smelled breakfast."

Luke and Rory grinned at each other. "What's with the grinning? Did you guys plan something?"

"No, it's just funny how well Luke seems to know us." Rory said smiling at her mom.

"Did you sleep well?" Lorelai said kissing her daughter on the forehead.

"Yep, it's good to be in my own bed again."

"Good."

Lorelai walked over to Luke and put her arms around his waist. "Good morning."

"Morning," Luke said encircling her with his arms. Lorelai stood on her tiptoes and kissed him softly.

"Hey, kid in the room." Rory said and made a disgusted face.

"You're not a kid anymore. So live with it or just don't look." Lorelai said smirking at her daughter.

Luke put their breakfast on the plates he had sat out earlier and the three of them enjoyed their little family breakfast together.

**The following weekend…**

Rory and Lorelai were sitting in the living room together, each of them reading a book. Luke had gone to the diner for a couple of hours and promised to come back earlier and bring dinner with him. Lorelai glanced at Rory who was sitting in the armchair. Rory noticed her mom looking at her and smiled at her.

"How's the book, sweetie?"

"It's good," Rory said and focused back on her book. A few moments later, she noticed that Lorelai was still looking at her. "Mom?"

"Sorry sweets, just staring into space." Lorelai lied and went back to her book. She wanted to talk to Rory about her feelings now that a couple of days had passed, but she didn't want to force her to anything.

Now it was Rory who was still looking at her mom. "Mom, is there something you wanna talk about?"

"Well if you're asking like that?"

Rory sighed, "What is it, Mom?"

"Come here and sit down with Mommy for a sec," Lorelai said and patted the couch next to her.

Rory put her book her down and sat down across from her mom, putting her legs up just like Lorelai did.

"Allright, I'm all ears." Rory said a little agitated, she had a feeling about what Lorelai wanted to talk to her about.

"Don't be like that," Lorelai said in a more serious tone, "I didn't even say anything yet."

"Mom."

Lorelai sighed. She knew this wasn't going to be easy. "I just wanted to know how you're feeling, now that you've been back from Europe a couple of days."

"I'm feeling good. No more jet lag, happy to be back at Yale in a couple of days. Is that all? I wanted to start packing today." Rory said getting up from the couch.

Lorelai stopped her with a hand on her knee. "Is this how's it gonna be between us from now on? I thought you were gonna come talk to me if there's something that's bothering you?"

"Well, there's nothing to talk about." Rory answered in an aggravated tone.

"Have you talked to Dean?"

"No."

"Are you going to?"

"NO. Would you please drop it? I said I didn't wanna talk about it." Rory yelled at her mom and stormed off into her room, slamming the door shut behind her.

"Great, just great." Lorelai was about to follow Rory to her room when the phone started to ring. Lorelai looked around for the phone and finally found it under the couch pillow.

"Hello."

"Hey, it's me." A familiar voice said on the other end of the line.

"Oh, hey. What's up?"

Luke thought that her voice didn't sound as chipper as usual. "Is everything allright, Lorelai?"

Lorelai sighed and sat back down on the couch. "Not really. I just had a fight with Rory."

"Oh, that doesn't sound too good."

"Yeah, I was trying to talk to her again and … I don't know… it just turned out wrong. She yelled at me, stormed off into her room and slammed the door behind her."

"Give her some time to cool off and then talk to her again."

Lorelai sighed again. "You always make it sound so easy."

"Don't worry. You'll work it out."

Lorelai took a deep breath, trying to free her mind from her recent fight with her daughter. "Hey was there a reason you called?"

"Not really. I just wanted to say hi."

Lorelai smiled. She still couldn't believe how sweet Luke was around her. "Hi."

"Hi." He said smiling. "Uhm, so you still want me to come over?"

"Yeah, sure. We don't have anything to eat here."

"Do you ever?"

"Good point. And besides I don't want to spend the last couple of days fighting with Rory, before she has to go back to Yale."

"Allright. I'll be with you in about an hour. Sound allright?"

"Perfect. Bye, Luke."

"Bye, Lorelai."

Lorelai put the phone down and switch the TV on, hoping to keep her mind from wandering back to the fight with Rory."

About an hour later, Luke walked into the house. He came into the living room where Lorelai was still watching TV.

Lorelai turned around when she heard him opening the front door. "Hey."

"Hey. Whatcha doin?"

"Not much, just watching some TV and waiting for you to bring food." She smiled at him.

Luke immediately noticed the sadness in her smile. He sat down beside her and pulled her to his side.

"You okay?" He said looking straight into her eyes, noticing the redness in them. "Have you been crying, Lorelai?"

Lorelai only answered him with an even sadder smile. A single tear made it's way down her cheek. Luke gently brushed it away with his thumb and cupped her face with his palm. "Hey, don't cry."

Lorelai sobbed into his shoulder. "I don't know what to do, Luke. I really just wanted to talk to her about her feelings. I didn't want to offend her or anything."

"I know, I know. Shh, it's okay." Luke tried to calm her down as best as he could. "It's not easy for either one of you at the moment. You just gotta give it some time. If she doesn't want to talk about it now, you just have to be patient for a little longer. I'm sure she'll come and talk to you about everything soon. She probably doesn't know what to think of all this herself. It's totally different to be back in Stars Hollow, where everyone knows her and she's gotta be afraid that people will find out about what's happened eventually and talk behind her back. Maybe going back to Yale will give her some more time to think about it. You know look at it from a different perspective and figure it out herself. I know you don't like to hear this, Lorelai, but she's not a little kid anymore and there are things that's gotta figure out herself. The only thing we can do for her is be there for her and wait 'till she wants to talk about it. Okay?"

Lorelai took a deep breath and wiped away the tears on her cheeks. "Okay." She leaned forward a gave look a gentle kiss on the lips. "Thanks, Luke. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"It's ok, I'm here for you."

"I love you."

"I love you, too." Luke stroke another tear out of her face and smiled at her. "How about you get Rory and we'll have a nice and peaceful dinner together and enjoy the last couple of days before she has to go back to Yale?"

Lorelai nodded and went to Rory's room to get her.

Lorelai softly knocked on Rory's door. "Honey, can I come in?"

Luke was setting out the food on the couch table when he heard Lorelai yell for him.

"Luke."

Luke ran over to Lorelai who was standing in the doorway to Rory's room.

"She's not here," she said in a frantic voice.

"Did you hear her leave?"

"No I didn't. I was in the living room the whole time, I would've seen her leave." Lorelai walked into Rory's room, looking for a note or a hint where she might have gone to. Then she saw the open window. "Luke…"

Luke walked over to where Lorelai was standing and saw that the window was open.

"She must have gotten out through the window."

Lorelai sank down on Rory's bed. Luke saw the paleness in her face and went to get the phone. Still in the living room, he dialled Sookie's phone number.

"Hey Sookie. It's Luke. Is Rory with you?… No, we don't know where she is. Can you come over here? I need you stay with Lorelai…. Okay, bye."

Luke walked back into Rory's room. Lorelai was still sitting on Rory's bed, staring at the open window. She looked over to Luke when he sat down beside her.

"Lorelai do you know Lane's number?"

"Speed-dial 6." She said in a monotone voice.

Luke held her close to his body. "Hi Mrs. Kim. It's Luke Danes, is Lane there? Can I please talk to her… no it's an emergency…." Luke heard Mrs. Kim yell for Lane. "Hi Lane. Is Rory with you?" Luke was hoping that her best friend might know Rory was. "Do you know where she could be? … Yeah that would be great, thanks. Bye."

"Lane is gonna help looking for her and I'm going to take Jackson with me and see where she is."

Lorelai just nodded, not able to respond.

A few minutes later, they heard Sookie calling for them from the hallway. "In Rory's room." Luke said.

Sookie went into Rory's room. She'd never seen Lorelai like this before. Sookie sat down on the other side of Lorelai putting an arm around her shoulder. "Go, Jackson is waiting for you outside. He's got a cell phone, so you guys can call us when you got her."

Luke nodded and kissed Lorelai on the forehead. "Bye."

Lorelai turned around, "Luke?"

Luke turned back to her, "yeah?"

"Just bring her back."

"I will. Bye." Luke waved goodbye and walked outside to see Jackson.

**A/N2: I know there could have been more of LL action in this chapter, but I gotta keep some action in the storyline. Hope you guys can forgive me. The next chapters will be LL focused again. The next chapter will be up in a week, as long as you keep reviewing, so I know people are still reading my stuff. Keep the reviews coming!!**


	14. Talking things out

_Disclaimer: See first chapter._

_A/N: Allright. I'm soo sorry that it took me such a long time to update. I had to deal with some family stuff first before I could continue writing this. But now I'm back again and I hope it was worth waiting for you guys!_

_Thanks so much for the sweet reviews. They really make me feel better, so keep them coming._

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 14 - Talking Things Out**

Luke walked outside. "Hey Jackson."

"Hey, Luke."

"Thanks for helping me."

"No problem. Where should we start?"

"I don't know. I guess, we'll just walk around town and then… I have no idea."

Jackson saw the worried look on Luke's face.

"Don't worry, Luke. She can't be that far. And what's gonna happen to her in Stars Hollow?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

**Meanwhile…**

After Rory had stormed into room her she decided that she needed some fresh air, but because she didn't want to face her mom at the moment she decided to climb out the window.

She walked around in the town for a while, thinking about the fight she just had had with her mom. She took out her cell phone and called a familiar number.

"Hey it's me. Can you meet me at the bridge in 10 minutes? Please? OK, bye."

Rory turned her cell phone off and put it back into her jeans pocket. A few minutes later she arrived at the bridge and sat down in the middle of it, her feet dangling just above the water.

A few minutes later she heard footsteps coming closer, but didn't look up.

"Hey," she heard a familiar voice saying next to her.

"Hey," she said back. "Can you sit down, please?"

The person obeyed and sat down next to her. Neither of them said anything for a few moments.

"I was kinda surprised when you called. I thought you never wanted to see me again."

Rory still didn't say anything.

"I'm sure there was a reason you called."

For the first time Rory looked up into the other person's eyes, her eyes filled with tears that were about to spill any minute.

"I wanted to…" her voice cracked with tears.

"Rory, what is it?"

She took a deep breath. "I am so so sorry, Dean."

"Shh, it's okay." He pulled her sobbing figure into his arms, gently rocking her back and forth, trying to comfort her.

After a few minutes Rory pulled back wiping the tears off of her cheeks.

"God, look at this," she said in a little more steady voice.

"What?" Dean asked her confused.

"You should be hating me right now. I hurt you in the worst way. I destroyed your marriage and yet you're sitting here, comforting me while I'm crying my eyes out about something you probably don't even care about. I'm so selfish. I'm sorry, Dean. I should just leave and stay out of you life and you should just forget about me and…"

Dean stopped her with his hand on her arm. "Rory, look at me."

Rory took a deep breath and looked into his eyes.

"I don't hate you Rory, I could never hate you…"

"But, I…"

Dean stopped her again with his hand on her arm. "No, please let me finish this. I need to get this out."

Rory nodded and waited for him to go on.

**Back at the Gilmore house…**

Lorelai and Sookie were sitting on the couch waiting for a sign from Rory. Sookie had made some tea for Lorelai earlier but she had rejected it.

A few minutes later, Sookie broke the silence. "Did you try her cell?"

Lorelai stared at her best friend. "Give me the phone, quick."

Sookie spotted the phone on the couch table and handed it to Lorelai who quickly punched in Rory's number. Both Sookie and Lorelai seemed to hold their breath while Lorelai was waiting for a signal.

"The number you are calling is not available at the moment, please try again later."

Lorelai sighed and put the phone back on the table.

Sookie gently rubbed her back. "I'm sure they'll find her soon."

**Back at the bridge…**

Now it was Dean's turn to take a deep breath before he continued. "I was really confused when I got that letter from. I didn't know what it meant… for us. That night at your house… I was hoping there'd be a chance for us to get back together. I wasn't happy with Lindsey anymore but I didn't want to admit to myself that it wasn't the right decision to marry her in the first place. We were way too young and I didn't know how to be a husband and how to take care of a family. I was hoping that being with you would help to ease my pain. But it didn't. It only made it worse…."

Rory flinched a little at his words.

"Not because I regret what we did. I don't, and I never will. But I realized that it wouldn't be the same with us. You and I have both moved on with our lives. After I had read you letter over and over again I sat down with Lindsey and told her about everything and she and I agreed that it wasn't going to work out between the two of us. We got divorced a month ago."

For a moment, Rory wasn't able to say anything. "Oh my god, Dean. This is all my fault, isn't it?"

Dean shook his head. "No, Rory. None of this is your fault. I knew it wasn't working between the two of us and Lindsey knows that, too. She moved to California with her family, because her dad took a job there."

Rory slowly got her speech back. "How are you feeling now?" she asked softly touching his hand with hers.

Dean looked out on the water and then back at her. "I'm OK." Dean got up and looked across the water again. Some of the leaves had already changed their color and the colors of the Indian summer were now shimmering in the water of the lake.

Rory got up a little confused about his sudden change of mood. "Dean?" she said turning him by his arm so he was facing her again.

"I'm moving back to Chicago." He blurted out still not able to look at her.

Rory was shocked. "You what? When?"

"Next week?"

"Because…"

"No," he interrupted her before she could go any further.

"Where you going…"

"Yes, I wanted to come see you in Yale next week."

"Wow."

"I applied to a couple of colleges after the divorce and I didn't even think they would accept me in Chicago, but they did. I think it'll be good for me. You know, start a whole new life in a different place."

Rory slightly nodded her head, still a little shocked. "Then I need to tell you something before you leave."

"Ok that's just fair."

"I just want you to know that… that I don't regret what has happened between the two of us, either. I don't regret anything about our past. I just want you to know that."

"That's good to hear. Come here." He said pulling her into a tight embrace.

"I love you, Dean. I will always love you as my first boyfriend and the first love of my life and a really good friend."

"I love you, too, Rory." He said holding her close to him.

Rory pulled away after a few moments and smiled at him one more time. "Bye, Dean. Take care of yourself."

Dean smiled back at her, "Yeah, you too, Rory."

And with that each of them went they're own way, not knowing when or if their paths would cross again.

**Meanwhile back at the house…**

Lorelai was back to her old self again. She was pacing around the living room, furious.

"I'm gonna kill her, Sookie. I swear to god, when she gets back here, I'm gonna kill her. How can she do that? Doesn't she know that I'm worried sick when she disappears and I don't know where she is?"

Sookie was sitting on the couch, watching Lorelai pacing the living room floor. "Lorelai, you need to calm down a little. I mean, I'm sure she has a good explanation as to why she left without telling you."

Lorelai turned around in a swirl facing her best friend. "That explanation has to be majorly good. Sometimes I don't even think I know her anymore. I mean, first she runs off to Europe with my mom, leaving me a letter as to where she went and that it could take a couple of months for them to come back. And now she just climbs out the window. And again I have no clue where she is, if she's alone or if someone's with her. I mean, god knows what could have happened to her and I'm here not knowing if she's hurt or kidnapped or whatever…"

Just at that moment Lorelai and Sookie heard the front door open and close again. Soon after that Rory came walking into the living room. She didn't expect to see her mom and Sookie there.

"Mom, Sookie, what…"

"Where the hell have you been?" Lorelai yelled at her daughter.

"I was…"

"And what the hell were you thinking just climbing out the window like that? Are you trying to imitate me as a teenager?"

"Lorelai…" Sookie said trying to calm her best friend, but Lorelai dismissed her with a glare.

"I was worried sick about you, Rory." Lorelai's eyes started to well up again. "Do you have any idea what it feels like to go into your daughters room and find out that she's not in there? For the second time within a couple of months? I thought you ran away for good or got kidnapped or hurt and I couldn't help you because I didn't know where you were. Do you have any idea, Rory, how worried I was?" Lorelai's cheeks were strained with tears by now.

"No I don't. I'm sorry about making you worry," Rory yelled back at her mom, tears running down her cheeks. "Do you have any idea how it feels when you've done something you know you shouldn't have done, but you can't change anything about it and every single person is looking at you like you're a little slut and not the sweet little girl the used to know? When even you're mother, who you thought was your best friends looks at you in a completely different way and you have no idea how to change that? Do you know how that feels?"

Lorelai's angry expression fell. Just above a whisper she said, "Yes, I do. Oh my god, Rory. I am so so sorry, babe. C' mere." Lorelai stepped towards Rory and pulled her into her arms. Rory started to sob into her mothers shoulder.

"Shh, it's ok, Hon. Shh." Lorelai soothing stroke Rory back with one hand.

Sookie watched the two of them from the couch, with teary eyes and decided to leave the two of them alone. She slipped past them to the door and gently patted Lorelai's shoulder, waving a good- bye on her way out. Lorelai nodded and mouthed a 'Thank you' to her best friend.

**Meanwhile…**

Outside Sookie saw Luke and Jackson walking towards the house. "Is she back? Is Rory back?" Luke asked her, hurrying towards the house.

Sookie stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Yes she is."

Luke sighed with relief. "Good. Is she ok?" he asked, his expression turning concerned again.

"I think so yes. But I think we should leave them alone, so they can talk things out. There was a lot of yelling and tears involved, but…" Sookie held up her hands in front of Luke in order to stop him from going into the house, "but they're good now. They just need some time to talk."

Luke looked at Sookie and then back to the house. "Ok, uh. Do you want to come to the diner and get some hot cocoa or something? It's getting kinda cold, now that the fall is so close."

Sookie nodded and hooked arms with Jackson. Sounds like a good plan. Let's go."

With that the three of them walked off towards the diner. Luke was glad that he didn't have to wait by himself till he could go back to the house.

**Back at the house….**

Lorelai and Rory were still standing in the living room hugging each other closely. Rory's sobs had subsided a little bit.

"Come on honey. Let's sit down on the couch," Lorelai said and led Rory to the couch, handing her a tissue from the box on the couch table, when they were finally sitting.

Rory blew her nose and took a deep breath, releasing it with a long sigh.

"I went to see Dean," she said almost inaudible.

"Oh, ok." Lorelai said just as soft as Rory had.

"First, I just wanted to go for a walk, but then I realized that we had to talk about what happened at some point, so I called him and we met at the bridge."

Lorelai nodded. "So did you guys talk about everything?"

"We did." Her expression fell.

"Rory? What happened? Did he hurt you?"

Rory vehemently shook her head. "No, he didn't. He told me that he's going to move out of town in a couple of days."

Lorelai was surprised. "Because of…"

"Not exactly," Rory said shaking her head. "He applied to a College in Chicago after the divorce, but didn't think that he would get in. But he did and now he's going back to Chicago. And he also told me that Lindsey has already moved to California with her family because her dad got a job there."

Lorelai gently put her arm around her daughter's shoulders. "Are you sad that he's leaving?"

Rory looked down at her hands. "A little. But I'm more sad because I'll be losing a really good friend. We both know that we shouldn't have done what we did. We wouldn't be able to work it out if we got back together. We're just too different now. This way he can start over in Chicago and I can completely concentrate on my second year in Yale."

"Ok, good."

"What that's all you're gonna say?" Rory asked surprised.

"No."

"Ahh, I knew it." Rory said.

"But it's not what you think."

Lorelai turned to face her daughter and took Rory's hand in hers. "Honey I want to apologize for the way I treated you within the last couple of months."

"It's ok, Mom. You don't have to apologize. I didn't mean it the way I said it earlier."

"No. You did. And you were right. I didn't think about how you must be feeling after all this. I just thought about the way I felt. And earlier when you said it, it just hit me."

"What?" Rory seemed a little confused.

"You felt exactly the way I felt when I got pregnant with you, just that you didn't get pregnant, right?" Lorelai looked at her questioningly.

"What? No, god no."

"Ok, good, sorry. I realized that the way you felt treated by me, was exactly how my mother treated me. In fact she still does."

"Mom."

"No, Rory. I just can't believe that I treated you the way I did. I acted just like my mother had," a single tear rolled down Lorelai's cheek. "And I don't know how to make that up to you. I'm so so sorry."

Rory felt the tears rolling down her cheeks again. "I know, mom. And I'm not mad at you anymore. I know you're sorry and that you were disappointed in what I did and I'm really sorry about that."

Lorelai tugged her daughter towards her. "I know babe, I know," she said in between tears.

After a few minutes both of them had calmed down. Lorelai pulled away a little and dried the tears on her daughter's cheeks. "So, we're good?"

Rory smiled at her mom, "Yeah we're good."

"So what do you say, pizza and a movie?"

"I don't know. It's late and I'm really tired. Let's do it tomorrow night and we'll invite Luke, too. I can't believe I'm gonna be back in Yale in two days."

"Oh, don't say that. I don't wanna think about that now."

Rory stood up and kissed her mom's cheek. "Night, Mom. I love you."

"Night, babe. I love you, too. And no sneaking out again. I'll check up on you in a little while and see if you're still there."

"Allright. Night." Rory smiled and went into her room.

Lorelai sighed and leaned back on the couch. After a couple of minutes she picked up the phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Luke. It's me."

"Oh hey. Is everything Allright with you guys?"

"Yeah, we're good. She sleeping now. We had a really good talk."

"Good I'm glad to hear that."

"Yeah, I'm glad we're good now."

"And you're really fine?"

Lorelai had to smile at his loving concern for her.

"Yes, sweetie, I'm really ok."

"Good. So I'll see you tomorrow morning for breakfast at the diner?"

"Yes you will. Me and Rory."

"Good."

"Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"What for?"

"For giving me some time to down all this."

"Never mind. I'll see tomorrow. Sweet dreams, I love you."

"I love you, too. Night."

Lorelai put the phone back on the coffee table and went to bed, happy that things seemed to be back to the way they were.

_Next chapter: Rory's going back to Yale and Luke and Lorelai are spending more time together again. Also first encounters with Lorelai's parents after the Europe trip of Rory and Emily. So stay tuned. :)_

**A/N2: I know there's been a lot of Rory in the last chapters but I promise you there's gonna be a lot more Java Junkie action soon again. But I have to keep it a little interesting. So tell me if I succeeded. Reviews are always welcome and wished for. **


	15. Leaving for school and a not so pleasant...

**Chapter 15 – Leaving for school… and a not so pleasant phone call**

**A/N:** Allright guys. I'm sorry it took me so long to update. I had to deal with the loss of a family and in between I finished high school. I hope I can update again, soon. I'll try my best. Thanks for all the sweet reviews. It's always such a treat to open your mailbox and see that you got a new review. So keep the reviews coming and ENJOY reading…

**Chapter 15 – Leaving for school… and a not so pleasant phone call**

**The next morning...**

"Mom? What's taking you so long? We wanted to be at Luke's half an hour ago. You know I need to get back to Yale in a couple of hours!"

Lorelai came running down the stairs in a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, wearing only one of her sneakers, with the other one still in her hands. "I'm sorry hon. I couldn't decide on what to wear and then after I had finally decided on what I wanted to wear I couldn't find my other shoe. Now that I have my other shoe, I'm ready to roll."

Rory sighed and pulled her mom towards the door. "I told you I wanna get to Yale before Paris decides to change our rooms again."

"Relax, baby. You'll get there in time! Are you sure you don't want me to come with you and help you with your stuff?"

"Yes, Mom, I am. I don't have that much stuff anyways and I don't wanna look like a little baby, that needs to be escorted to her sophomore year in Yale by, her mom."

"You'll always be my baby, even when you're 80 years old, although that would make me… ugh, really old. Anyway, you sure you wanna drive to Yale from Luke's and not come back here before you leave?"

Rory nodded her head in agreement. "Yes, I'm sure. I know you'll try to get me to stay a little longer when we get back here before I leave, and then it'll be like midnight when I finally get to Yale."

Lorelai pouted and walked towards her jeep. "Okay, but then you'll have to live with an embarrassing good-bye scene at Luke's, can you live with that?"

Rory laughed at her mother's attempts to keep her from leaving. "It's better than having an embarrassing scene at Yale."

Both of them got into their separate cars and drove off to Luke's for breakfast.

**At the diner...**

Luke turned around to see who was coming into the diner, when he heard the bells above the door jingle.

"Oh there's our favorite coffee supplier in the world." Lorelai said coming into the diner.

Luke just rolled his eyes at her. "Morning ladies."

"Hi Luke" Rory said waving to him.

Lorelai walked over to him and gave him a quick kiss. "Are you gonna join us for breakfast?"

"Yeah, That would be great, come and join us, Luke." Rory said giving him the famous Gilmore smile that he couldn't resist.

"Allright. Just sit down over there and I'll be right with you, with your food."

Lorelai looked at him a little confused. "But we haven't ordered yet."

"I know, you'll get a special breakfast, because Rory's going back to Yale today."

Rory did a little happy dance and sat down at a table near the window.

"Don't forget the coffee, hon!" Lorelai yelled after Luke and joined her daughter.

A few minutes later, Luke came out of the kitchen with his hands full of food, and Caesar walking right behind him with even more food. The girls shrieked in excitement.

"Oh my god, Luke! You outdid yourself, there's like everything you could ever think of having for breakfast." Rory said looking over their table that was now completely filled with food.

"Well I thought you could use some good food before having to eat the cafeteria food again. It's no big deal." Luke said.

"Thanks so much Luke, you're the best."

"It's no big deal." Luke said, turning a little red.

"Oh man, you even made croissants." Lorelai said excited.

About half an hour later the three of them were done eating and Rory was about to leave for Yale. Lorelai and Luke walked Rory out to her car to say goodbye to her.

"So you got everything you need honey?"

"Yes, I do."

"And you know you can call me anytime right? Call me if you need anything. And call me when you get there, so I know you get there safe, and…"

"Mom." Rory interrupted her. "I'm not going to other side of the world I'm just going back to Yale for my sophomore year."

Lorelai pulled her daughter into a tight hug. "I know hon. It's just that I'm gonna miss you so much." Lorelai said still holding her daughter.

"I know," Rory said into her mom's shoulder. "I'm gonna miss you, too. But I'm not that far away and I'll come home to visit."

"Promise?" Lorelai said rubbing her daughter's back.

"I promise."

"Good." Lorelai said kissing her daughter's cheek and reluctantly let go of her.

Rory turned to Luke and gave him a hug, too. Luke was a little surprised but then returned the hug and gently rubbed her back.

"Bye, Luke."

"Bye, Rory, drive safely."

"I will. And take good care of her for me." She whispered into his ear when letting go.

Luke nodded his head, "I will. Take care."

Lorelai walked Rory to the driver's side of Rory's car and pulled her into another tight embrace. "I love you, kid."

"I love you, too, mom."

Rory got into her car and rolled down her window. She started the engine and waved a last goodbye to her mom, who was fighting hard to keep back some tears.

"Bye, sweety." She said as she watched her daughter drive off to Yale.

Luke gently put his arm around her and the both of them waved another good-bye into the direction to where Rory's car was driving off.

Lorelai sighed deeply when Rory's car was out of sight.

"You ok?"

"Yeah. It's just hard to see her leave every year. I mean, she was so scared last year and now she's all grown up and doesn't care about her old mom anymore."

"You know that's not true, right?" Luke said pulling her a little closer to his side.

Lorelai looked up at him and gave him a sad smile. "Yeah, I know. Sometimes I just wish, that she's still that little girl that she was when she could barely walk. You know, where she couldn't do anything without me. And now she's that young magnificent woman who's going her own way in a different town and who's soon gonna go off into the big wide world. And I just have to stand back and watch it."

"Hey what's with all the sadness now?" Luke asked her gently rubbing her back. "You know she's become that magnificent young woman, because you raised her to be that way. You've raised an incredible kid there, Lorelai, you should be proud of yourself. And you know she can't live without you, she's gonna call and visit, you'll see her often enough don't worry. Ok?"

Lorelai gave him a much happier smile. "Yeah, thanks for being my backup guy, Luke, and thanks for saying all that nice stuff to make me feel better."

Luke leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss. "You're welcome, but I didn't just say all that to make you feel better. I said it because it's true."

Lorelai leaned up and kissed him again. They were just about to deepen their kiss, when Lorelai's cell phone rang.

"Nice timing," she said opening her cell phone. "Oh, hi mom. No sorry." Lorelai rolled her eyes at Luke, who was about to go back into the diner, but Lorelai stopped him by holding onto his shirt. "Yes, mom, I know tomorrow's Friday. Yes, I know it's the usual Friday night dinner…. I don't know she just drove back to Yale, you have to call her…. Allright I'll see you at seven… WHAT? No, mom, wait…" but Emily had already hung up.

"What's the matter?" Luke asked, seeing her shocked face.

"For some reason, my mom found out about our relationship and now…" she hesitated a little.

"What?"

"She wants you to come to dinner tomorrow."

Luke made a disapproving face. "Oh, no, Lorelai? I can't do this."

"You heard it, she hung up on me before I could say anything else."

"Ugh…" Luke grunted.

"Please? Just this one time? I'm sure it won't be that bad."

Luke looked at her in disbelieve. "Are you kidding me? Do you remember the last couple of times I met your parents. And you've never come back from that dinner in a good mood."

"I know, honey. But I'm gonna be there, too. I'm gonna make sure their not gonna attack you or something. Please? Just this one time?"

Luke sighed. "Allright, but just this one time."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'll make it up to you, I promise."

"You better."

Lorelai leaned up and whispered into his ear. "I'm sure we'll find something."

Luke swallowed hard and turned a little red.

"So you wanna come back inside the diner with me?" he said in a slightly raspy voice.

"I'd love to but I'm already later for work. I'll come back tonight for dinner."

Luke pulled her into his arms and kissed her softly. "Allright, see you tonight."

"Bye," she said giving him another peck on the lips.

Luke watched her drive away and then walked back into the diner to finish the last bit of the morning rush.

**Dragonfly Inn, a couple of minutes later…**

Lorelai walked into the kitchen and went straight for the coffee machine.

"Hey, good morning," Sookie said in her usual chipper voice.

"Hey."

"What's wrong? You okay." Sookie said a little concerned. "Did something happen with Luke?"

"No, it's not Luke." Lorelai said shaking her head.

"Well then what is it? Oh Rory left for Yale this morning, didn't she?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah but that's not the only thing. My mother called."

"Oh." Sookie said knowingly. "Well, you knew that call would come soon, right?"

Lorelai sighed. "Yeah, but now she doesn't only want me to come dinner. Somehow she found out about Luke and now he she wants him to come, too. And I couldn't even talk her out of it, because she hung up on me before I was able to say anything else. And, oh boy, can't I wait for the hard time she's gonna give me, because I didn't tell her about our relationship. And then she's gonna let it out on Luke, because she of course thinks that he's not good enough for me, and, well, you can see the pattern there. It's gonna be one fun night."

Sookie patter her best friend's back. "I'm sorry hon, I wish I could do something to make you feel better."

"I know, thanks. I just want to get it over with."

Lorelai emptied her cup and put it in the sink. "Well, I'm gonna get to work. I'll see ya later, Sook."

"Yeah, see ya later."

**The following night, in front of the Gilmore Mansion…**

Rory had just arrived when Luke and Lorelai had pulled up in her Jeep. They got out of their cars and hugged each other.

"So tell me again, how did she manage to get Luke into this?" Rory asked her mom in disbelieve.

"She didn't manage, she just said I'll see you and Luke for dinner tomorrow and then she hung up on me before I could say anything."

"Oh, boy."

"Yeah, you can say that again. Come on let's face the dragon den." Lorelai hooked arms with Luke and they stepped towards the main entrance. "Ready?" she asked looking up at him.

Luke took a deep breath and sighed. "Ready as I'll ever be."

Lorelai rang the doorbell and a few moments later they were greeted by Emily, who had opened the door.

"Lorelai, Rory." She said smiling at the girls. "Luke," she said giving him a polite smile.

"Nice, to see you again Mrs. Gilmore."

"Yes, same here. Well, come on in it's getting cold out there."

Lorelai pushed Luke inside and whispered into his ear, "I got you're back."

TBC….

Okay, so what do you think? Sorry about the cliffhanger, but I promise I'm gonna update soon. I know I said that the last time. But I had to deal with some family issues and didn't have much time to write anything.


	16. Talking

**Chapter 16 – Talking**

**AN1: Alright! I finally finished another chapter. I had a massive writer's block and then I just started writing and I wrote this whole thing within two days, basically, and I have to say I'm pretty proud of my work. I'd like to thank all my wonderful reviewers. Without you guys I would have stopped writing a long time ago. It's always nice to hear what people think of the work you're doing. I won't thank each one of you, because all of you are equally important to me. So THANKS to all of you. And I hope you like this one! Please review.  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my thoughts. **

**Chapter 16 – Talking**

They stepped inside and handed their coats off to the maid.

"Mrs. Gilmore is waiting for you in the sitting room."

"Thanks," Lorelai said and walked into the sitting room, followed by Luke.

"Lorelai!" Emily exclaimed coming into the hallway.

"Hi, Mom." Lorelai was a little surprised that her mom actually seemed happy to see her.

"Luke." The nice moment was gone when Emily greeted him with a fake smile.

Lorelai decided to swallow her anger for now.

"Mom," she said pulling Luke towards her. "You remember Luke, don't you?"

"Of course I remember him, Lorelai, I invited him. Nice to see you again, Luke." She gave him another forced smile and shook his hand.

"Yeah, nice, to see you, too, Mrs. Gilmore."

"Oh, please, call me Emily."

"Sure, Emily."

Emily put on her third forced smile that evening. "So how about some drinks?" She said walking off into the living room.

Lorelai sighed and pulled into the living room, Rory following them.

"Gin Martini, please," Lorelai said, sat down on the couch in the living room and gestured for Luke to join her. Rory sat down on the couch opposite to where Luke and her mom had taken seats.

Emily handed the drink to Lorelai and turned to Luke. "And what would you like, Luke? Would you like a beer, Luke?"

"Uh, sure, why not Emily. Thanks."

Lorelai slightly leaned towards him. "You know, you can have something else, Luke. She's got everything. Scotch, Whiskey, basically any hard liquor you could imagine."

Emily turned around with raised eyebrows. "Oh yes, I'm sorry, Luke. You can have anything you want, I just assumed you would enjoy a nice cold beer."

"A beer is fine, Emily. Thanks." He said and patted Lorelai's knee before she could say anything else.

"A soda for you, Rory?"

"Yes, please, grandma."

Lorelai rolled her eyes at Rory who just shrugged her shoulders at her mom's gesture, indicating that she didn't know either why Emily was acting the way she did.

Emily handed the drinks to Luke and Rory and then sat down next to Rory on the couch, with a martini in her hand for herself.

Rory cleared her throat after a few moments of uncomfortable silence. "So grandma, where's grandpa tonight?"

"Oh, well he has a business meeting to attend, which he couldn't postpone."

"Oh, that's too bad." Rory glanced towards her mother.

"So," Lorelai started, "will he be back tomorrow?" 'Cause, you know he, uhh, wanted to help me with our insurance. I mean, the Inn's insurance."

"Yes, of course, he will be back some time tonight. He's just in a meeting at his office, Lorelai. I guess you should call him tomorrow and remind him, if he offered his help to you. He's been really busy lately." Emily replied.

At that moment the maid came in to announce that dinner was ready.

"Thank you, Brianna. Well, shall we?" Emily said getting up and walked off into the dining room, dragging Rory with her.

Lorelai took a deep breath and exhaled it loudly, to which Luke took her hand and squeezed it gently.

"Are you coming, Lorelai?" Emily called from the dining room.

Lorelai let her shoulders slump down and squeezed Luke's hand even tighter. They walked into the dining room, still holding hands, which didn't go unnoticed by Emily, and sat down at their usual places, with Luke sitting next to Lorelai.

The maid came in and served the salad, then returned a few minutes later and poured some white whine for the adults at the table.

"So how's that diner you're working at Luke?"

"He owns it mom. He doesn't only work there he _owns_ it, mom." Lorelai said a little annoyed at her mother.

"Of course, I'm sorry Luke. How's that diner of yours?"

Lorelai glared at her mother, but Luke patted her knee under the table, signaling her that he didn't mind.

"It's going great, Emily. Thanks to the Dragonfly Inn, there are a lot of tourists coming to the town, which means even more business for all the other stores in town."

Lorelai smiled at Luke, thanking him for the compliment.

"But the diner's always been doing great, right Luke? I mean even before we opened the Dragonfly."

"Yeah, I guess that's true." Luke regarded her with his special smile that was only reserved for her.

"Well, that's nice to hear." Emily said, noticing their little interaction.

The rest of the dinner was spent fairly quiet and soon Lorelai, Luke and Rory were accompanied to the front door, of the Gilmore Mansion, by Emily.

"Well, it was nice to see you again, Luke. I hope you'll join us more often from now on, since you and Lorelai seem to be quiet serious with each other, am I right?"

"Yes we are, Mom." Lorelai said with a harsh voice.

"Thanks again for the invitation, Emily."

"You're welcome, so I'll see you next week."

"Bye, mom."

"Bye, grandma."

"Goodbye," with that Emily closed the door to the Gilmore Mansion."

Rory looked at her mom's grim expression, a little concerned. "Mom…"

But Lorelai just waved her off. They said their goodbyes to Rory, who had to go back to Yale, and made their way back to Stars Hollow.

On the drive home, Luke looked over to Lorelai, who hadn't said a word since they had left her parent's home. He decided not to say anything to her. He knew that she would when she was ready to talk. Lorelai was glad that he didn't pry her to talk and just kept staring out the window.

Luke pulled into her driveway about twenty minutes later and turned off the engine. Lorelai was still staring out of the window, not noticing that the car had come to a halt.

Luke softly touched her leg. "Hey, we're at your place."

Lorelai was a bit startled by his touch. "Huh. Oh, sorry. I didn't notice."

"It's ok." He said gently massaging her leg with his thumb.

"Do you wanna stay at my place, tonight?" Lorelai asked, facing him.

Luke smiled at her. "Sure, I'd love to."

* * *

While Luke was getting ready for bed, Lorelai was already in bed, sitting up against the headboard, flipping through a magazine.

Luke turned off the lights in the hallway and came into the bedroom, putting his clothes on the chair next to Lorelai's dresser. He watched Lorelai out of the corner of his eye, thinking that it was a little strange, that she still hadn't said anything about the dinner at her parent's place that night. Lorelai didn't look up when he got into bed and leaned against the headboard next to her.

After she still hadn't regarded him, Luke gently touched her arm to get her attention.

"Lorelai."

She put down her magazine and turned towards him, smiling sadly. "I don't know what I was thinking, Luke. I mean, after all, she did invite you to dinner. And then she's acting totally rude. I'm sorry, Luke. I'm so sorry for the way she treated you Luke."

"Don't worry about it, honey. It's fine." Luke took her hand in his and gently caressed it with his thumb.

"No, it's not fine, baby," she said in a soft and gentle voice. "I'm really trying to get along with her, you know, have some kinda mother-daughter relationship with her, but I guess, that's never gonna happen. Every time I try she does something that totally throws me off again and I have to realize that's nothing's changed and probably will never change between us, because she just can't accept me and my life the way it is." She took a deep breath and released it with a heavy sigh. "I know she lied to me about my dad."

Luke furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"He didn't have a business meeting. He was in the pool house the whole time. He's been living there, ever since my mom and Rory got back from their trip to Europe."

"What? Really? How did you find out?"

"Rory told me about it, since my parents didn't feel the need to do so. She called their house last week because she wanted to ask my dad something about a book they had been talking about, and then the maid told her that he's living in the pool house now and gave her the number to call him there. I mean, I knew that they have separated but I thought they were just sleeping in different rooms now, but not that my mother has actually thrown him out of the house. It's still the same property, but it's a different house. I mean, they have separate entryways, they don't even look at each other anymore."

"Geez, I'm so sorry, Lorelai. I wish I could do something to make you feel better."

Lorelai gently squeezed his hand. "It's not your fault, and you're doing enough by being there for me."

"Always," he leaned forward and delicately brushed his lips over her's, undermining his statement.

"I was thinking about going to the pool house tomorrow and talk to my dad and then to my mom, or the other way around, or to both of them together, if I can get to stay in the same room long enough. I hope my dad will listen to me, I'm not so sure about my mother though. They've been married for almost forty years, they can't just throw that away."

"Well, maybe you should do that. But don't get you're hopes up to high, I don't want you to get disappointed or… hurt."

Lorelai cupped his face with her hand and gently kissed him. "What did I do to deserve you?"

"Being yourself. The most wonderful woman in the world I've ever met." This time it was him who leaned forward and started a slow and sensual kiss."

"I love you," she whispered into his ear when they pulled apart.

"I love you, too."

Lorelai put the magazine on her nightstand and turned off the light on her side. "Let's just go to sleep, I don't really want to think about my parents anymore tonight." She snuggled into his body and rested her head on his bare chest.

Luke reached out and turned off the lamp on his nightstand as well.

"Night, babe." He gently kissed her and then settled his cheek against the crown of her hair.

"Goodnight, honey." Soon they had drifted off into a deep sleep.

**The next morning…**

As Lorelai was slowly waking up the next morning she reached for the space next to her, longing for Luke. The sheets were empty but there was a note from Luke.

_Good morning, sleepyhead,_

_I didn't want to wake you this morning. You looked so beautiful in your sleep. _

_Love, Luke_

_P.S.: Check the coffee machine_

Lorelai smiled and slowly crawled out of the bed. She put on her robe and made her way downstairs into the kitchen. Having arrived there she had to smile again. He had made her coffee and put her favorite coffee mug on the counter, with another note from him hidden beneath it.

_Hey,_

_you found it. Come by the diner when you're ready and I'll have another cup and some breakfast waiting for you._

_I love you,_

_Luke_

Lorelai smiled widely. She still couldn't believe how lucky she got with this guy.

* * *

Luke glanced to the door every time he heard the bells above it announcing the arrival of someone, hoping that the next person to enter his diner would be Lorelai.

When Lorelai walked into the diner a little after eleven, Luke was nowhere to be seen. She sat down at the counter and waited for him to come back, presumably from out of the kitchen. She was right. A few seconds later, Luke came out of the kitchen and saw Lorelai flipping through the menu. Luke smiled happily about her presence, lighting up his mood immediately.

He walked behind the counter and leaned towards her. "Hey there."

Lorelai jumped a little.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." He softly touched her hand.

"Nah, don't worry. I'm allright." Lorelai leaned over the counter and gently kissed him on the lips. "Morning."

Luke smiled and kissed her again. "Good morning."

Lorelai loved that smile of his that was only reserved for her. So soft and warm, no signs of his normal gruffness.

"Do you want some breakfast?"

Lorelai tapped her lips with her fingers, pretending to think really hard.

Luke rolled his eyes at her gesture. "Pancakes?"

Lorelai beamed at him. "With chocolate? And some bacon on the side?"

"Sure."

"Yay. Oh and lots and lots of coffee."

Luke looked at her, his eyebrows squinted together. "Didn't you get enough this morning?"

"You know I never get sick of it." Lorelai gave him her best puppy dog eyes, which she knew he couldn't resist.

"Thanks, babe." Lorelai said when Luke poured her a cup and set it in front of her on the counter.

"So, are you still planning on talking to your parents today?"

Lorelai sighed, "Yeah, still planning on it."

"It'll be fine." He said touching her hand reassuringly.

"Soo… how about that breakfast, a certain note under my coffee cup promised me this morning?"

"Coming right up." Luke said walking off into the kitchen.

* * *

"Luke, I'm leaving," Lorelai yelled into the kitchen, when she had finished her breakfast.

Luke came out of the kitchen, wiping his hands on a dishtowel. He followed Lorelai outside the diner, towards her jeep.

She unlocked the driver's side of her car and turned around to face him. "So, I took the afternoon off, do you wanna come by and watch a movie or something like that?"

"Sure, why not. What time do you want me to be there?"

"Like six, six-thirtyish? That sound good?"

"Sounds perfect," he said and leaned forward to kiss her softly. "Good luck with your parents. Call me when you get home?"

Lorelai sighed deeply. "Yeah I will, I really hope they're gonna listen to me."

Luke gently squeezed her shoulder and then pulled her into a hug, not caring about who was watching them.

"Don't get yourself worked up about it," he softly whispered into her ear.

"I'll try not to." Lorelai pulled back slightly and kissed him. "I'll see you later."

"You sure will. Bye, sweetie."

"Bye, babe." She gave him another peck on the lips and drove off towards the Inn to finish some work, before she would drive to her parents that afternoon.

* * *

Lorelai arrived at the Inn and walked straight into the kitchen to get another cup of coffee.

"Sookie?"

"Over here!"

"Hey, what's up?" Lorelai said walking over to Sookie who was chopping some peppers for lunch.

"Not much. What's up with you? You don't look too happy. Oh no. Did you have a fight with Luke?"

Lorelai shook her head, "No I didn't have a fight with Luke. I'm gonna go try talk some sense into my parents about their separation. My mom banned my dad into the pool house and lied about it to me."

"Oh, that doesn't sound good."

"I know, I don't even know if they're gonna listen to me about it. My mom told me that my dad had a business meeting, when really he was sitting in the pool house all by himself, while we were having dinner with my mom at the house."

"Oh. I don't really know what to say, sweetie."

Lorelai waved her off. "Well you're not the only one. I don't even know why I'm getting myself into this."

"Well, they are your parents after all. And they've been married for such a long time."

"I know, I guess that's why I'm gonna talk to them. I mean, even though I didn't get along with them most of the time, their marriage has always been… I don't know… I guess I always wanted to have a marriage like they have, or had. They always made it work you know? I mean they had some fights or _arguments_ as they used to call it, but they always worked it out, no matter what. And I just can't believe that they just wanna give up on that."

"I know what you mean. I hope Jackson and I will still be married after such a long time." Sookie sighed and put her knife down for a moment.

Lorelai softly squeezed her best friend's shoulder. "I'm sure you will, you guys are made for each other."

"You think?" Sookie said with a beaming smile.

"I do. I really do." Lorelai took a sip of her coffee. "Well I'm gonna go do some paper work and then drive to my parents later. Is it ok if I take the rest of the day off?"

"Sure, honey. We got everything covered here. Don't worry about it."

"Great. So I'll see you Monday?"

"Yeah, see ya. Good luck with your parents."

"Thanks, bye Sook." Lorelai waved goodbye to Sookie and walked to the front desk.

* * *

"Hey Michel, were there any messages for me?"

"Why do you think there are any messages for you? You don't seem to be here that often. You come in late, you go early and then you expect me to be your secretary!" Michel yelled in a heavy French accent.

"Ok, Michel. Let's set something straight here." Lorelai said getting aggravated. "I own this place. I can come in here and go whenever I want to go. You are working for me, and you don't have the right to question my working hours, or you will have to find yourself another job. I've been really patient with you, but don't stretch it too far. Are we clear on that?" Once in a while Lorelai was asking herself why she hadn't kicked him out yet, but on the other hand she also knew that it wouldn't be the same without myself working for them.

Michel nodded his head. "Yes, we are clear on that."

"Good." Lorelai said patting his shoulder. "Now, are there any messages for me."

Michel sighed. "Yes, I put them on your desk."

"Anything important?"

"The plumber called and said that he cannot come until tomorrow."

Lorelai sighed. "I'll call him right away. Anything else?"

"Yes, your diner man called."

"Luke called." Lorelai said her eyes lighting up at his name. "Did he say what he wanted?"

"No, just for you to call him back."

"Ok, I'll be in my office if you need me."

* * *

After Lorelai had finished her paperwork and coaxed the plumber to take a look at the broken sink in room four that night, she picked up the phone and called the number of Luke's diner.

"Luke's?" He said picking up the phone after a couple of rings.

"Hey, it's me." She said smiling when she heard his voice.

Luke's voice immediately got softer when he heard her. "Hey, you."

"You called?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to see if you're doing ok, you know, about going to talk to your parents later."

"Aww, that's so sweet of you, honey." Lorelai couldn't believe how caring he was towards her.

"Ah, don't mention it. So are we still on for tonight. Dinner and movie at your place?"

"Yeah, of course, I'm really looking forward to it."

"Good, me too. I think I might get off a little earlier, actually. Is it ok if you go over to your place and wait for you when I'm done?"

"Of course, I like it when I don't have to come home to an empty house."

"Good, then I'll wait for you. You know you should probably get going soon, it's three thirty already."

"Is it, really?" She exclaimed surprised. "Gee, I didn't notice. I was so busy finishing all the paper work here, so that I can take the weekend off. Ok well I really should get going. I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, see you soon. Take care."

"I will, bye hon."

"Bye."

They both hung up their phones with a small smile on their faces.

* * *

Lorelai told Michel that she was leaving and walked out to her car to drive to her parents' house in Hartford.

Half an hour later she had parked her jeep in front of her parents' mansion and rang the doorbell. Another new maid opened the door.

"Yes? How may I help you?"

"Hi, I'm Lorelai Gilmore. Is my mother here?"

"Yes she is," the maid said opening the door for Lorelai to step inside. "Mrs. Gilmore is in the living room."

"Thank you." Lorelai handed her coat to the maid. "Uhm, would you mind getting my father to come to the living room as well?"

"No, not at all Miss Gilmore. I will tell his valet right away."

"Thanks." Lorelai said to the maid and walked into the living room. "Hi, mom."

Emily looked up from the book she was reading, a little surprised to see her daughter. "Lorelai! That's a surprise, what are you doing here?"

"Uhm, well." Lorelai gestured to the couch opposite to where her mother was sitting. "May I?"

"Of course, sit down, Lorelai."

"Thanks," Lorelai sat down on the couch and started at her folded hands in her lap.

"Lorelai? What is this about?"

Just at that moment, Richard walked into the living room from outside.

"Richard, what are you doing here?" Emily said with an angry undertone in her voice.

"What do you mean? Your maid told my valet that you wanted to see me in the living room!"

"No I did not!" Emily rose from her seat abruptly, her anger visible in her move.

"Actually," Lorelai said getting up from her seat as well, "I asked for dad to come."

"What?" Richard and Emily said in unison.

"Why would you do such a thing Lorelai?" Emily said getting angry with her daughter.

"Because we need to talk. _You_ need to talk."

"Theirs is _nothing_ to talk about Lorelai." Emily said and started to leave the room.

"Mom, wait!" Lorelai called after her mom.

"As much as I don't agree with your mother these days, I have to agree with her on this." Emily stopped at the bottom of the stairs, at his words.

"There is _nothing_ to talk about Lorelai." Richard told his daughter and was about to leave as well when Lorelai couldn't take it anymore.

"Stop it! Both of you!" She yelled after her parents.

Richard and Emily stopped dead in their tracks and turned around to face their daughter, surprised at her action.

Lorelai took a deep, calming breath. "Please, you know I don't ask you for favors very often, basically never. This once I'm begging you to sit down and listen to me. Please?"

Lorelai looked at her dad with pleading eyes "Dad?" then she turned towards her mother. "Mom, please?"

Emily and Richard glanced towards each other. They couldn't remember hearing such anxiety in their daughter's voice. They both nodded their agreement and sat down as far away from each other as possible.

Lorelai sat down in the armchair between the two couches her parents were sitting on. "Thank you."

* * *

…TBC…

Please review!

* * *

**AN: I hope you guys liked this chapter. I'm quiet happy with it myself, I think I finally found my own personal style in writing. So I'm gonna be going on vacation in a week, but I will try to write one more chapter before I leave. Probably not as long as this one, but I'll definitely try to get it done before I leave. Thanks again to all of you who keep reviewing my story and stick with me even though I tend to take a little longer to update than I did before. But I'd rather put more work into a chapter and make it a good one, with which I'm satisfied, than post a chapter that I'm not satisfied with.**


	17. Talking cont and a complete breakdown…

**_AN: First of all thanks to everyone for reviewing! You guys are, what keeps me, as a writer, alive. Without I wouldn't be doing this. __I promised to update before I go on vacation and I kept my promise. Until this morning I had no idea how I was gonna write this and then I wrote the whole chapter within almost an hour, I think. I won't be back until the 3rd of June, but I'll have paper and pen with me all the time so I can keep writing, and only have to type it up when I get back. Allright; I hope you'll enjoy this chapter just as much as the rest of my story (or maybe even more). Tell me what you think… ;)_**

* * *

**Chapter 17 - Talking (cont.) and a complete breakdown…**

_Previously:_

"_Stop it! Both of you!" She yelled after her parents. _

_Richard and Emily stopped dead in their tracks and turned around to face their daughter, surprised at her action._

_Lorelai took a deep, calming breath. "Please, you know I don't ask you for favors very often, basically never. This once I'm begging you to sit down and listen to me. Please?"_

_Lorelai looked at her dad with pleading eyes "Dad?" then she turned towards her mother. "Mom, please?"_

_Emily and Richard glanced towards each other. They couldn't remember hearing such anxiety in their daughter's voice. They both nodded their agreement and sat down as far away from each other as possible. _

_Lorelai sat down in the armchair between the two couches her parents were sitting on. "Thank you."

* * *

_

**Chapter 17 – Talking (cont.) and a complete breakdown…**

Richard and Emily were both glancing down on the floor, while Lorelai was looking from one parent to the other. After her parents still hadn't said anything, Lorelai took a deep breath and stood up, pacing the room. "I don't believe you two! What is going on with you? You guys have been married for such a long time and then out of a sudden you don't talk to each other anymore because of a stupid fight! Dad even moved into the pool house, and you don't even seem to care that he's done that, mom!"

Still there was no reaction from either Richard or Emily. Lorelai took another deep breath and continued her rant getting angrier with her parents with every word she said. "This is _unbelievable_! My whole life there was one thing that I always admired about the two of you. Your marriage. 'Cause no matter what happened, the two of you always seemed to work it out some way. And I know there have been a couple of bumps in the road, 'cause I'm not deaf. I heard you guys having your arguments over the years. But still you always worked it out. As a kid and even over the last couple of years, I always hoped that I, someday, would have a marriage like you guys have. You know with a partner that takes care of me and is just there for me when I need him and understands me no matter what. And most of all, loves me the way you guys love each other." Lorelai stopped her pacing and turned to look at her parents, noticing their surprised looks to her words. "Do you really want to leave all of this behind and not even try to work out?" She said in a much softer tone, looking first at her father and then at her mother. "You need to talk to each other, you need to work this out. I'm begging you. I know you think I don't care about the two of you, but I do. I really do, I want you to work this out, I don't want to watch my parents separate over such a stupid thing."

Still there was no reaction from either one of her parents. Lorelai stood between them, her hands on her hips, waiting for a reaction from her parents.

After a few more moments Emily was the one to speak up first. "Are you done, Lorelai?"

Lorelai looked at her mother in utter confusion. "What?"

"I said, are you done, Lorelai?"

"Yes." She said furrowing her eyebrows in confusion.

"Good. Then I suppose I can leave now?"

Lorelai looked at her mother angry, but also disappointed. "Is that all you have to say, mom? Is that all you have to say about dumping a marriage after almost forty years?"

Emily got up from her seat and turned towards her daughter. "This is none of your business, Lorelai! You have no right to talk to us like that. We are your parents for god's sake, Lorelai! Don't you have any respect for us at all!"

"What? Are you kidding me? That's why I came here to talk to you, because I respect you as my parents and because I care about you. I don't want to see separated, I want you to work this out, mom!"

"This is none of your business, Lorelai! It only concerns your father and me! And you're little speech clearly showed that you don't have any respect for us or otherwise you would have left this to us to deal with."

"Uh! I don't believe this. Dad, don't you have anything to say about this?" Lorelai almost yelled at her dad.

"And who are you to talk about relationships anyway?" Emily started again. "You haven't had one good relationship your whole life."

Lorelai felt like someone had just stabbed her. She couldn't believe what her mother had just said.

"You left Christopher when you got pregnant and walked out on us at the age of sixteen. And then what? A few men here and there! Then you had this relationship with this teacher from Rory's school, which was totally inappropriate. You got engaged to him, getting Rory's hopes up that she would finally have a family, and then out of a sudden you broke the engagement and ran of just a couple of days before your marriage. I don't even want to talk about your relationship with Jason, just another disaster. And know you're in some kind of _relationship_ with this diner man. You really think that he's right for you, Lorelai? You should have married Christopher when you got pregnant with Rory and you wouldn't have to worry about anything now!"

The whole time her mother had thrown all those hurtful words at her, Lorelai wasn't able to say anything. She was barely able to breath.

"Nothing would be _allright_ now, if I had married Christopher!" Lorelai was yelling at her mother, tears streaming down her face. "We never would have made it because we were too young. Can't you see that?"

"It would have been the right thing to do, Lorelai!"

"Of course, I forgot. Do the right thing for society; always keep up the picture of a happy family. I would have been unhappy, my whole life, I had married Christopher."

"Oh, nonsense. Look at you, look at your life. You could have such a wonderful life, Lorelai."

"I have a wonderful life, mom." Lorelai yelled at her mother, while even more tears ran down her cheeks. "I have a beautiful and smart daughter, who's is going to Yale. I have worked myself up from being a maid to running the Independence Inn and now I even opened my own Inn with my best friend. And on of top of that I have a wonderful boyfriend, who supports me in everything I do and who is proud of what I have accomplished in my life. And most importantly, he loves me and I love him with all my heart."

"Oh please."

"You know what? Screw you. If you can't accept my life the way it is, I don't care! I don't need you in my life! I've managed without you for a long time and I can manage my life without you in the future. I realized that this is never gonna change. You are never gonna approve of what I do. Don't expect to see me here ever again."

Emily was taken aback by her daughter's words but still she didn't give in. "Fine, go. Do what you have to do."

"Oh, believe me I will. Have a nice life."

Lorelai glanced at her father, who hadn't said a word during the whole fight between his wife and daughter. He had watched them in shock, not able to say a word. After there wasn't any further reaction to expect from his side, Lorelai turned around and left the house, slamming the door behind her.

Richard and Emily were staring after her, flinching at the sound of the front door slamming shut. Richard rose from his position and turned to his wife. "Are you happy now?" He said, his voice full of sadness and disappointment. "I think we lost her for good now, Emily." With that the turned around and walked outside towards the pool house, leaving Emily in the exact same position. After few moments she realized what she had just done. She had probably lost her daughter forever now.

* * *

**Outside the Gilmore-Mansion…**

Lorelai got into the jeep and drove out of her parent's driveway, tears still streaming down her face. After a few minutes of driving towards her hometown, the tears still hadn't subsided and she could hardly see the road ahead of her. Lorelai pulled the jeep over to the side of the street and collapsed onto the steering wheel, sobbing over what had just happened at her parent's house. Lorelai didn't know how long she had been in this same position until her cell phone rang. She pulled it out of her purse and took a deep breath before answering it. "Hello?" she with a fairly steady voice.

"Where the hell are you?" Luke almost yelled into the phone on the other end of the line. "I've been trying to call you forever. Do you know what time it is?"

Lorelai looked at the clock in the front of her jeep and flinched when she saw that it was almost eight o'clock. She didn't realize how much time she had spent crying on the side of the road. "I'm so sorry Luke. I didn't know it was that late already. I'll be home in about ten minutes."

"Geez, Lorelai. Are you ok?" Luke, of course, noticed that her voice sounded different, and was getting worried about her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just…. I'll be home in a couple of minutes, then we can talk allright?"

"Ok, sure. Please be careful."

"I will." Lorelai pressed the end button and put the phone back into her purse. She took a look in the mirror and wiped away the remains of her tears, thanking herself for putting waterproof make up on that morning. After making sure that she looked somewhat presentable she turned the engine back on and made her way home.

* * *

**The Gilmore house…**

Luke was already sitting on the steps of the front porch, waiting for her, when she pulled up in front of her house. As soon as she had stopped the car, Luke was at the jeep opening the door, basically pulling her out of it and crushing her into a tight embrace. "Don't ever scare me like that. Do you hear me?"

On the way home Lorelai had promised herself not to cry in front of Luke, not to let her parents get to her, but when she realized who worried Luke was about her when she didn't show up on time, she couldn't hold her guards up anymore. She was only able to nod her head on his shoulder before once again her body shook with sobs, tears streaming down her.

When Luke felt her crying against his shoulder, he held her even tighter, supporting most of her weight with his arms. "Shh, it's ok. It'll be allright."

"God… Luke. You have… no idea how… bad it was." She said into his shoulder, between sobs. "She said such… horrible things to me…"

"Shhh, come here." Still holding her tight to his body, he slowly guided her towards the front steps of the house, sitting down with her and pulling her back into his arms. This scene reminded him of the time when she got home from a dinner with her parents and her grandmother, breaking down in his arms, after having been insulted by her grandmother all night.

"And my dad… he just sat there… as if he didn't care at all… he didn't say a word the whole time… just listening to her… basically calling me a failure and insulting me and my whole life… my job… my career… you."

"Shh, babe. It's ok now." Inwardly Luke wanted to drive to her parent's house and yell at her mother, but he knew that that probably wouldn't change a thing. He knew that Lorelai needed him the most now and that he would never leave her side.

"No it's not Luke." She said looking up at him, wiping the tears from her cheeks. "I mean what if she's right? What if, all I am is a big loser? I mean, look at me I never finished school. I was never able to give my daughter a complete family, and I was never able to have a working relationship my whole life."

Lorelai freed herself from his embrace and stood in front of him. "I don't even know why you're still with me, Luke. You deserve so much better than me. You deserve a much better woman than me. I'm not worth it, Luke. All I can seem to do is disappoint and hurt people. You shouldn't have to be with me, you should just break up with me and find a woman who's worth being with, while your still young." With she turned around and walked towards the end of her driveway.

Luke jumped up from his seat on the front steps and yelled after her disappearing figure. "Lorelai where are you going?" by holding on to her arm.

"I'm going away from you, so I can't hurt you anymore." She said her voice shaken with tears.

Lorelai ran away from him towards the street.

_TBC…._

_Please review…. :D

* * *

_

_**AN2: Allright people. I hope you enjoyed it and I hope you'll leave me some reviews. ;) I'm sorry to leave you with a cliffhanger here, but I need to keep the tension up, until I can update again. I'm gonna keep writing, while I'm on vacation, so I only have to type it up when I get back home. And maybe I'll even have a couple of chapters to post then. **_


	18. The Breakdown

**CHAPTER 18- THE BREAKDOWN**

**DISCLAIMER: see first chapter**

**AN: Allrighty! I finally had some time to type up the next chapter. I wrote two and a half chapters during my trip but I didn't have much time to type them up so far, because I got a summer job just a couple of days ago, which has been keeping me really busy and I was just too tired to get anything done when I got home in the evening. Anyway, I typed this one up, and it's a little longer then the previous chapters, but I had a lot to say. I'm really trying to get my own style flowing and I hope I'm succeeding in doing so. So tell me what you think, I'm always looking forward to your opinions.**

**Btw: I changed the last couple of lines of the last chapter so you might wanna go back and read it, I wasn't really happy with the ending. But it's really just the last couple of lines.**

**_ENJOY!_**

**Chapter 18** **- The Breakdown**

"Lorelai, stop." Luke ran after her and finally caught up with her at the end of the driveway.

"Stop." He said getting a hold of her arm.

Lorelai struggled to get out of his grip, but Luke didn't let go of her.

"Luke get me go," she said tears running down her face in thick streams. "I'm not good enough for you. Please let go!" Again she tried to get out of his grip.

"Lorelai stop it! Look at me."

"Please, Luke." She didn't have enough strength to struggle his grip any longer.

"Look at me," he said in a much softer voice, at which Lorelai finally looked into his eyes.

"Do you really think I would have waited for you for _eight_ years, if I thought you weren't good enough for me? Do you think I would have watched you get together and break up with all those jerks if I didn't love you? I don't care about your parents, Lorelai. I don't care about how rich they are, or what they think of me, all I care about is what you think of me. As long as you accept me the way I am and as long as I know that you love me, that's all I care about."

"I do love you." She told him, tears still running down her cheeks. "I really do."

"Then what the hell is you problem, Lorelai?"

All of a sudden Lorelai realized that he was absolutely right. She shouldn't care about what her parents thought of her or Luke. All that really mattered was their feelings for each other and she knew, she had never felt about any other man in her life the way she was feeling about Luke. When realization hit her, she fell into his arms and sobbed into his chest. "I'm so sorry, Luke. I'm so sorry."

Lorelai's knees gave up under her body and she sank down to the ground pulling Luke with her, who immediately pulled her into his lap to keep her of the cool ground, but even more to hold her as close as possible.

"Shh, it's okay." He softly ran his hands over her back while she was sobbing into his chest, curled up against his body. After a while Lorelai's sobs had subsided a little and she started to shiver. She was only wearing a thin coat over her outfit and since it was the middle of November it was getting very cold at night.

When Luke felt her shiver against his body he simply lifted her small figure up into his arms and carried her towards the house. The door was already unlocked, because he had already brought in the groceries earlier and had then come outside again to wait for her on the front porch. He pushed the door open and walked inside, kicking it shut behind them. With Lorelai in his arms he walked upstairs into the bathroom. Lorelai was still crying softly against his chest, but had calmed down since he had pulled her into his arms. She had her arms tightly around his neck, her face buried in his shoulder. When Luke was about to put her down, she softly whispered a "not yet," into his neck. Luke kissed her forehead and sat down on the closed toilet seat, holding her close to his body, whispering a soft "okay," into her hair.

Neither of them cared that they were still wearing their coats and neither of them said anything for what seemed like an eternity.

When Luke finally felt Lorelai's arms loosen around his neck and her tears had stopped, he stood up and let her slide down to her feet. Her turned towards the bathtub, turned on the water and added some bubble bath, not letting go of her hand during the whole process. He moved closer to Lorelai and gently slipped her coat off of her shoulders, keeping his eyes fixed on hers, signaling her to trust him. He proceeded to undress her until she was standing in front of him, dressed only in her underwear. Once again he turned towards the bathtub and turned the water off. He moved to take his coat off afterwards. After he had undone the first button he felt her hands on his. He looked into her eyes and saw nothing but a reflection of his feelings for her shimmering in her eyes.

Just as gently and caring as he had undressed her, Lorelai was now slowly undressing him. At this very moment, neither of them had any sexual intentions; it was just another way of showing each other, how much they cared about the other person. When Luke was standing in front of her, dressed only in his boxers Lorelai stopped and leaned forward, kissing him slow and sensually, once again showing him how strong her feelings for him were. After pulling away from him, she stepped out of her underwear and got into the bathtub, leaving enough room for him to slip in behind her. Before getting into the bathtub himself, Luke lit up a few candles, she had always stored in the bathroom cabinet and positioned them on the windowsill and on the bathroom counter. After turning off the light in the bathroom, he slipped into the tub behind her and immediately pulled her towards his body, placing his arms securely around her midsection. Lorelai leaned comfortably back into his, resting her own hands atop of his. Luke was lightly caressing her forearm and felt her body relax against his.

Once again for a few moments, they simply enjoyed each other's presence. Luke felt her relax more with each minute and knew that she was about to fall asleep. He leaned forward a little and whispered into her ear "Let's go to bed, honey. It's getting late."

Lorelai just nodded her agreement and scooted forward in the tub so he was able to get out.

Luke wrapped a towel around his waist and then helped her getting out of the tub as well. He wrapped a towel around her body and led her towards the bedroom. He got her favorite pair of pajamas out of the dresser, opposite the bed, put it on the bed for her to change and then went back into the bathroom to blow out the candles and drain the water in the tub, giving Lorelai a little time to change.

Lorelai was already tugged in under the covers when he came back into the bedroom. He quickly changed into his own nightwear and then climbed into bed next to her. Lorelai immediately cuddled up to his body, while he securely put his arm around her.

He gently kissed the top of her head, before kissing her lips when she looked up at him.

"Are you doing ok?" He asked her in a slightly concerned tone.

Lorelai looked away from him for a short moment. When she looked back into his eyes, tears were glistening in her own, threatening to spill over. "Not now… but I will be."

Luke nodded and kissed her forehead. It killed him having to see her like this, knowing that there wasn't anything he could do to help her, except to be at her side.

"Luke?" Lorelai gently squeezed his side to get his attention.

"Yeah?" He said looking down at her.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry about what, honey?"

"You know, my little freak out earlier."

"Hey, it's allright."

"No it's not. I shouldn't…"

Luke cut her off. "Lorelai, it's fine. Really."

"You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." He said kissing her softly in order to support his statement.

"You know that I love you, right?" she asked him, propping herself up resting her arms on his chest.

"Of course I do. I love you, too."

"Good." She moved up a bit to have better access to kiss him. Luke moved his arms around her body and pulled her on top of his, deepening the kiss. After a few minutes of slow and sensual kisses, Lorelai gave him another short kiss on the lips and caressed his cheek. "Goodnight, babe."

Luke returned the gesture and kissed her softly. "Night."

Lorelai rested her head on his chest and pulled the blankets up around their bodies. "Are you gonna be here when I wake up?" she murmured into his chest already half asleep.

"Yeah, I asked Caesar to open up tomorrow."

"Good," she said almost inaudible. "I like waking up with you."

"Me, too." Luke felt her body relax against his and knew that she had already fallen asleep.

Luke was lying awake for another couple of minutes thinking about the events of the past few hours. He had know Lorelai for almost a decade now and he was truly amazed by what she had accomplished in her life so far. She had come to this town with Rory as a baby, having almost no money and no place to stay. She talked Mia into giving her a job as a maid, although she didn't have any working experience, and a room to stay in. Her whole life, she has been working like crazy, saving every cent she could spare in order to provide a good life with good education for her daughter, even if it had meant that she had to go to her parents to ask them for money for Rory's education. She had worked herself up to being the executive manager of the Independence Inn and now she even owned her own Inn with her best friend, Sookie. And on top of that, he couldn't think of one person in the whole town, who didn't like her and who didn't admire her as much as he did for what she had achieved. She was such an extraordinary person and Luke just couldn't believe that her parents didn't see all of this or didn't want to see it, because their daughter wasn't leading the life, they had wanted her to live. Luke couldn't believe that her parents were taking the risk of losing their only daughter, rather than accepting the life she led and that she was happy with the most, instead of trying to change her.

What he knew, though, was the fact, that even if he couldn't replace her family, he would be her family, and Rory's of course, giving her all the support and love that she needed. He would always be there for Lorelai and Rory. He knew that there has never been a woman in his life that he loved as much and cared for as much and he could only hope that she was feeling the same way about him. Although he was fairly sure that she was feeling the same way about him, which would make him the happiest man alive.

Luke pulled Lorelai even closer to his body, entwining his legs with hers. He leaned down and ever so softly kissed her forehead, to which he felt her smile against his chest. He was pretty sure that she had the same feelings for him, as he had for, and soon he was drifting off to sleep as well.

* * *

**The next morning…**

While Lorelai was still sound asleep, Luke carefully untangled his body from hers, took some clothes out of the dresser and quietly left the room, careful not to wake her up.

About twenty minutes later he came back into the bedroom, now carrying a tray with a cup of coffee, a glass of orange juice for himself, a stack of pancakes and a single red rose that he had gotten from the local flower shop.

He put the tray down on his side of the bed and knelt down in front of her still sleeping figure. He leaned forward and softly placed a kiss on her lips. "Good morning, sleepyhead, time to get up."

Lorelai slightly stirred and then slowly opened her eyes, getting used to the morning sunlight, shining through the bedroom curtains.

When she had opened her eyes, Luke held rose up in front of her, which he had hidden behind his back.

Lorelai smiled at his gesture. "Is that for me?"

"No, it's for my other girlfriend," he said teasingly. "Of course it's for you. You know that you're the only person I've ever gotten flowers for."

Lorelai pulled him down by his shirt and gently kissed him. "I know babe, and that's one of the reasons I love you so much."

"Yeah what are the other reasons?"

"I'll tell you later, first I need food."

"Look behind ya," he said grinning at her.

"Ohh, breakfast in bed! You're the sweetest guy ever! Care to join me?" she asked making some room for him.

"Yeah, why not," he said shrugging and climbed into bed next to her.

Lorelai faked a shocked expression and held her hand over her chest. "Who are you and what have you done to my boyfriend? Luke Danes eating pancakes? I should mark that in my calendar."

Luke rolled his eyes at her. "Don't act so shocked. You know I eat that stuff sometimes, I just don't inhale it like you do. I wouldn't cook it every single day if I hated it."

Lorelai took the tray and carefully placed it on her legs. "I know, babe, I know. I just like teasing you about it."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Luke said. He took a piece of pancake with the fork and fed it to her.

"Mhmm, I love your pancakes," she said still chewing.

"Really? Didn't notice it all those years."

"Yeah, but you have to see it this way, I _still_ love your food after all those years."

"Thanks, although I don't know if that's really a compliment."

"No, I mean it as a compliment. But actually I think I have to thank you. And I mean, not just for the food, for everything you've done for me and Rory. I don't know what we'd have done without you through all those years." Tears were starting to well up in her eyes again.

"I'm sure you would have done it." He said pulling her into his arms, after putting the tray aside.

"I don't know, Luke. It would have been a lot harder without you."

"Still, I'm sure you would have made it."

"Still, thank you for everything you've done for us."

"You're welcome," he said brushing away a few tears that had spilled over the brim of her eyes.

"Hey, don't you have to go to work?" Luke asked her taking a look at the alarm clock on the bedside table.

"Nope, I don't. Today's my day off, didn't I tell you?"

"No I don't think so."

"Huh, I thought I did. Well, I'm all yours today."

"Really?" He said pulling her into his lap.

"Really. But actually I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Uhuh." Luke mumbled while brushing her hair off of her shoulder, starting to kiss _the_ spot between her neck and shoulder.

Lorelai took in a sharp breath. "Uh, Luke. Wait…"

Luke kept kissing her neck, making it basically impossible for Lorelai to form any coherent thought.

"Luke I'm serious," she said pushing him away from her.

"Sorry, I thought you like it when I do that." He replied a little offended. He sat up straight leaning against the headboard of the bed, Lorelai still sitting on his legs, facing him.

"I do," she told him, placing a hand on his chest, playing with the top button of his flannel shirt. "I really do, but there's something I wanted to talk to you about."

Luke placed his hand on her back, gently rubbing his thumb over her spine. "Okay, what is it?"

"What are we gonna do on Thanksgiving?"

"What do you mean? Aren't we gonna do the same we do every…" He suddenly stopped. "Oh," he said when realization hit him.

"Yeah," Lorelai sadly agreed looking down at his shirt. "Lane isn't really talking to her mom, so we won't go to the Kim's Thanksgiving, Sookie and Jackson are having both of their families over. I'm definitely not going to my parent's house and your not cooking at the diner, so I have nowhere to go."

Luke gently put a hand over her cheek, to make her look at him. "Sweetie, the reason I'm not cooking at the diner is so I can spend Thanksgiving with you. And didn't you forget about someone else?"

"Who do you mean?"

Luke looked at her surprised. "Rory? Also know as your daughter?"

"No, I didn't forget about her, but she still has a deal with my parents, which means that she still has to go to their house for Thanksgiving, even if I won't go there. Which is ok, 'cause they can't get enough of her. They're just not so fond of me."

"Then I'll make us dinner here."

"But it's not gonna be the same without Rory."

"I know honey. But she's not gonna be able to spend every single holiday with you in the future, there might be other days where she can't come home because she has to be somewhere else, you know? After all she's not a little kid anymore."

"But I don't want her to get all grown up." She said pouting.

"But that's the way it is with kids. They grow up and leave the nest."

Lorelai sighed. "Can't we go somewhere? Away from all of this?"

"Like where?"

"I don't know. How about your cabin?"

"I don't know," he said frowning. "It's really cold up there this time of the year."

"So? We'll keep each other warm," she said raising her eyebrows at him with a small smirk on her lips.

"You know. Actually I got a call from Liz, like two days ago."

"And…?"

"Well, she asked me if we wanted to come up to Maine to visit them over Thanksgiving."

"Really?" she looked at him surprised.

"Yeah, but I told her you probably didn't want to go."

"What? Why?" she looked at him confused.

"Because, Jess is gonna be there, too."

"Oh right."

"But, I mean, it's your choice. We can do whatever you want."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I don't really care where I spend Thanksgiving," he told her, "As long as I am with you, I really don't care."

"Aww, that's soo sweet," she placed a soft kiss on his lips."

"Well what do you say?"

**TBC...**

Sooo... what do you think? Good? Bad? Allright? Let me know! Reviews are always welcome.

**AN2: I'm trying to type up the next chapter as soon as I can. It's already on paper I just need to type it up. I guess I will update in a week or so, depending on how busy work is gonna keep me.**


	19. Thanksgiving plans revised

**Chapter 19 – Thanksgiving plans revised**

**Disclaimer: See first chapter for disclaimer**

**AN: First of all: SORRY: I know I promised to update much sooner, but I didn't realize how long this chapter would be. I kept typing and typing and suddenly I was shocked at how much I had written. So I hope it's not too long or boring or whatever. I didn't wanna cut it really, because I wanted to get this stuff out. I know I usually don't do this but I think it's time to thank you guys personally for all your reviews: _Sam_**: Don't worry about, just pop in sometimes and tell me what you think ;) **; _Courtney:_** I hope I got up to your expectations with this chapter as well ;)**; _Nina: _**first of all: thanks I'm glad you like my story. Second, I know they might say it more than you would expect maybe or as other writer's let them say it. But in each and every story the characters develop differently, and they certainly developed differently in my story than they did on the show. I'm trying to stay in the major line of events of the show but other than that, it's just the way I want to see them develop, and that's why I let them say it when I think it is the right moment (judging by my own feelings and how and when I would say it). But still, thanks for the critique, that's always appreciated ;) **; ProFfeSseR: **Just thanks! Can't tell you enough how much I appreciate your opinion on my stuff and thanks for being such a good friend ;) **; _everwoodgirl04: _**Oh wow. That's one of the best compliments a writer can get, I'd say ;) **_cb: _**funny, those are the initial of my real name. Anyway, thanks, and sorry I didn't update as soon as promised ;) **; _Phoebe4u: _**Thanks sooo much! That was a sweet review ;) **; _LukeNlorelaifan: _**I love writing about this side of Luke;) **And thanks to all of you who have reviewed in previous chapters! It's the best feeling ever when I open my mailbox and see that I have new reviews. You guys are why I write this! THANKS! **

**ENJOY!**

**Chapter 19 – Thanksgiving plans revised**

_**Previously:**_

"_But, I mean, it's your choice. We can do whatever you want."_

"_Are you sure?"_

"_Yeah, I don't really care where I spend Thanksgiving," he told her, "As long as I am with you, I really don't care."_

"_Aww, that's soo sweet," she placed a soft kiss on his lips."_

"_Well what do you say?" _

* * *

"Uh… ok."

"Ok, what?" Luke asked her, not sure what she meant by her answer.

"Ok… let's go to Maine."

Luke looked at her utterly surprised. "Are you sure? I mean, you don't mind that Jess is gonna be there after all that's happened between him and Rory?"

"Well, he's part of your family, and you don't get to see you family very often. I guess I can deal with him for a weekend." She told him shrugging.

Suddenly Luke pulled her towards him and kissed her fiercely.

"What was that for?" she asked him panting when they broke apart again.

"Just… thank you. You have no idea how much that means to me, Lorelai."

Lorelai leaned forwards and placed a much softer kiss on his lips. "That's the least I can do after all you've done for me."

"I thought we could maybe drive up there on Wednesday, you know have a little more time up there, how does that sound?"

"Sounds perfect." She smiled at him.

"Great. So I guess I should call Liz and tell her that we're coming" He said getting up from the bed, but Lorelai stopped him with a hand on his leg.

"Let me call Rory first. She doesn't know about all of this yet." She took her cell phone from the nightstand.

"Oh, allright. That's probably better. You call her and I'll go downstairs and clean up the kitchen."

"Stay here. You don't have to go and besides I'd like to have you with me when I talk to her."

"Ok." Luke sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close to him.

Lorelai opened her cell phone and speed-dialed Rory's number.

"Hey, Mom." Rory said picking up the phone after a couple of rings.

"Hey, Sweetheart. How's it going?"

"Pretty good. A little busy, 'cause I have to finish two papers that I have to hand in before the holidays, but I'm almost done with them." Rory said on the other end of the line, flopping down her bed in her dorm room. "So what's new with you? Everything allright over there?"

Lorelai took a deep breath and squeezed Luke's hand.

"Mom?" Rory was getting concerned after her mom didn't answer her previous question.

"Actually there is something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Well, what is it?" Rory was getting even more concerned now and sat up."

"You'll be on your own with your grandparents this Thanksgiving."

"What? Why?"

"Luke's sister invited us to Maine for Thanksgiving."

"Oh," Rory didn't really know, how to respond to her Mom's statement."

"Honey? You still there?"

"Yeah, I am." Rory said, still a little perplexed. "I just… have fun, I guess."

"Tell her," Luke said squeezing Lorelai's shoulder.

"Was that Luke? What does he want you tell me mom? Is there something else?"

"Well," Lorelai started, taking a deep breath. "I'm not just not coming to Thanksgiving dinner, I won't come to dinner at your grandparents at all, from now on."

"What?" Rory exclaimed getting up from her bed in one quick movement. "What'd they do now?"

"Oh, you know, just the usual stuff. But I'm not gonna just sit there and listen to them anymore. I'm sick of it and I told them to not expect me to Friday Night Dinners anymore."

"But what did they say mom? They must have really hurt you if you're reacting like this. I don't wanna spend Thanksgiving without you, mom." Rory told her mother sadly. "And I don't really wanna be with them if they hurt you like that."

"I know. I don't wanna spend Thanksgiving without you either, but unfortunately you have a deal with them, and I don't think your grandma is gonna let you get out of this. You know how she gets with holiday dinners. She'll tell you that a "family" is supposed to spend those holidays together and she's gonna remind you that you have a deal with them and that it includes spending these holidays with them. I'm so sorry, babe. I mean you could still try and get out of it."

"No it's ok, mom." Rory sighed into the phone. "But she better not expect a whole lot of conversation with me."

"That's my girl. You know, you could always come to Maine after the dinner."

"I don't know, mom. I'm sure you're not gonna be the only ones there." Rory said insinuating Jess's attendance.

"Right, no we're not." Lorelai sadly replied when she realized what her daughter meant by her comment.

"I'm not really sure if I'm ready to see him again."

"It's ok, hon. You can still think about it." Lorelai turned towards Luke, who nodded his agreement.

"I will. Listen I have to go. Marty's coming over to study, soon."

"Ohh, naked guy."

"Mom! How many times do I have to tell you that we're just friends?"

"Allright, allright, sorry hon. I'll talk to you soon."

"Bye, mom. I love you."

"I love you, too, sweetie." Both of them hung up their phones, sad about the current circumstances.

Lorelai put down the phone and sighed.

"How'd she take it?" Luke asked her, rubbing her leg in comfort.

"She sounded so sad."

"She'll be allright."

"Is it okay that I told her she could come up for the weekend if she wants to? I should have asked you first. I'm sorry. I just wanted to make her feel better. God I hate my mother for doing this. She's so controlling sometimes. I just didn't want Rory to feel…"

Luke shook his head and pulled her closer to him. "Hey it's ok. I'd love to have her with us over the weekend. Do you think she'll come if Jess is gonna be there?"

"I don't know. She said she's not sure if she's ready to see him yet."

"Yeah, that's what I thought. You know, we can always stay here, if you wanna change your mind about it. I haven't said anything to Liz, yet."

Lorelai turned towards him. "No. I don't wanna change my mind. I'm sure that won't be the last time she'll have to deal with seeing him."

"Yeah, probably not." Luke smiled at her, hoping that she was implying what he thought she was. "So, I guess I should call Liz then?"

"Yeah, go ahead." She said handing him the phone.

"You really sure?"

"Yes, I'm really sure. Go ahead."

"Allright. Just checkin'." He said and dialed his sister's number in Maine.

"Hey Liz, how's it going? … Good. … Actually, I wanted to know if your offer for Thanksgiving is still up? … Yeah… I don't know she might come up later … Allright… Well we'll see you Wednesday then… me, too… see ya." Luke turned towards Lorelai. "They're expecting us Wednesday afternoon and Liz wants me to tell you how excited she is too see you again."

Lorelai smiled at him. "Really? That's nice. I'm looking forward to seeing her again, too."

Luke put the phone back on the nightstand. "So, we'll drive up there Wednesday morning and stay until Sunday afternoon. How does that sound?"

"Sounds great. What time are we gonna leave?"

"Seven a.m."

"Huh? You've got to be kidding me. Why do you wanna leave that early?"

"Do you not want me to make dinner?"

"I do." She said pouting a little.

"See, that's why we have to leave that early. It's takes a little longer to make a Thanksgiving dinner. The drive up there is gonna take a couple of hours, depending on how many pit stops we have to make and then we have to go to the grocery store, because it's easier if we buy what we need up in Maine."

"Allright, I get it." She told him, still pouting a little. "But you better have lots and lots of coffee and doughnuts waiting for me in the car when we leave. Otherwise it's gonna be a very unpleasant drive. Cause then we have to stop a lot and I need to hear loud music so I can stay awake. Because if I fall asleep I probably won't be able to sleep at night and then you'll have to entertain me, because there's no way you're gonna sleep when I'm wide awake mister, and you don't…"

Luke cut her off with a kiss. "Allright, allright, I'll have coffee and doughnuts waiting for you in the car but the I'll have a say in the choice of music."

"We'll see about that."

Luke shook his head. "Promise, or I will deprive you of coffee."

"That's not fair," she said pouting again. "You know I can't say no when you threaten to not give me any coffee."

"I know."

"You're mean."

"So?" Luke said still not giving up. They both knew that Luke wouldn't take coffee away from her but sometimes he liked to tease her about it a little.

"Allright."

"Good girl." He said and leaned forward, placing a gentle kiss on her lips. Lorelai pulled him down on the mattress with her and deepened the kiss. He was just starting to kiss a trail down her neck when doorbell rang. Both let out a frustrated groan.

"You'll get the door I'll get something to drink." He told her and pulled off the bed with him.

They walked down the stairs quickly and while Luke went into the kitchen Lorelai went to open the door.

"Sookie? What are you doing here?" she asked her best friend surprised.

"Remember that you wanted to call after you had talked to your parents?"

"Oh shoot." Lorelai said, hitting her forehead with the palm of her hand. "I'm so so sorry, Sook. I got home pretty late last night and then I just forgot."

"It's allright, don't worry. So… how'd it go?"

"Oh well, you got a couple of minutes?"

"Yeah, sure. I don't have to be back at the Inn for a while."

"Well then, come on in and I'll tell you the whole story." Lorelai said, gesturing for her friend to come in.

"That bad, huh?" Sookie asked, following her into the living room where they sat down on the couch.

"You have no idea."

Just at that moment, Luke came walking out of the and placed to glasses of iced tea in front of the women. "I'll be upstairs reading." He told them, gesturing towards the stairs.

"Oh hey, Luke," Luke said surprised. "I didn't know you were here. Is this a bad time? Should I come back later?"

"Nah, you guys talk." He said waving her off. "I'll just be upstairs."

"Thanks, babe." Lorelai said smiling at him thankful for his understanding that she could need some girl talk with her best friend, especially since they weren't able to talk that much lately.

"Don't call me that in front of people." He said through slightly clenched teeth, looking rather embarrassed than mad at her.

Sookie smiled at their little banter.

"Sorry." She said still smiling.

"I'll be…." He said gesturing towards the stairs.

"Yeah," Lorelai nodded and watched him walking up the stairs.

"I'm so sorry. Are you sure you don't want me to leave?"

"God no, it's fine. I miss our girl talks."

"Yeah, me too." Sookie replied smiling at her best friend. "So tell me about your parents."

Lorelai's smile faded and she told Sookie what had happened at her parent's house the other night. "So I told them that I'm through with them and that they should not expect me to come to any more dinners or any other events involving them."

Sookie didn't know what to say, except, "I'm so sorry about all of this, sweetie."

"Yeah well, there's nothing for you to be sorry about."

"I know, but I just feel so bad for you, you know. So… was that what the thing in your front yard was about last night?" Sookie asked her cautiously.

"How do you…"

"Babette saw you."

Lorelai winced at Sookie's words. "So the whole town knows about my breakdown out there?"

"No. She only told Patty and they came to me right away promising that they weren't gonna tell anyone."

"Great." Lorelai said dropping her head into her hands.

"Don't worry, we're not gonna tell anyone, I promise." Sookie gently rubbed her back.

"Promise?"

"I promise, honey. We were just worried about you and since I'm your best friend they thought I should check up on you, make sure you're all right. That's all."

"Really?" Lorelai said looking up at Sookie.

"Yeah really. They really care about you, you know. And so do I."

"You guys are amazing."

"Well that's what friends are for, sweetie."

Lorelai turned towards her best friend and hugged her tightly. "Thanks."

"So do you want to tell me what happened out there?" Sookie asked her when they broke apart.

"Oh well. I had one of my little relationship freak-outs, or maybe it was a big one. But other than all the guys I've been with before… Luke didn't turn away from me, you know? He got me back down to earth, telling me that he's not gonna give up that easily."

"Oh, wow. I didn't know you guys were that serious."

"Well, I don't know if we're that serious. There are a lot of things that we haven't talked about yet."

"I know I might not have been very supportive at the beginning, but I think that you don't have to worry about anything with Luke." Sookie told her sincerely.

"You think so?"

"Yeah, I really do. I don't think I've ever seen you like this with any other man before. You look so happy around him or even when you talk about him. You get this kinda glow that I've never seen on you before. And Luke… he's soo different when he's around you, he's like a completely different person. I think you actually managed to bring out the softy in Luke Danes. He's a lot less grumpy. You really love him don't you?"

"Yeah, I do," Lorelai said looking down at her hands smiling.

"So did you guys have the talk yet?" Sookie asked wiggling her eyebrows.

"What talk?" Lorelai didn't really know what her friend meant.

"You know _the_ talk. Marriage, kids."

Lorelai looked surprised. "What? No, god no."

"Why are you saying it like that? Don't tell me you haven't thought about it yet."

Lorelai looked down at her hands, trying to avoid Sookie's questioning eyes.

"You have, haven't you?" Sookie asked softly.

"Maybe."

"Ohh you have," Sookie exclaimed happily. "Oh, shoot." She said after noticing what time it was already. "I'm sorry, Lorelai, but I have to get back to the Inn. So what are you doing on Thanksgiving now?" Sookie asked her already getting up from the couch.

"Actually Luke's sister Liz, invited us to Maine to spend Thanksgiving with her and her husband, So I won't be at the Inn until next week, but I'll come in tomorrow to give last instructions to Michel and the staff."

"Aww, that's allright, don't worry. Michel and I got everything covered at the Inn. I think it's good for you to get away for a couple of days."

"Yeah, probably." Lorelai said getting up as well, bringing Sookie to the front door.

"So I'll come in for an hour or two tomorrow."

"Ok, make you sure to come say bye."

"Course I will."

"Allright, see ya Wednesday." Sookie said hugging her goodbye.

"Yeah, bye. Say "hi" to Jackson and Davey for me."

"Will do. Bye."

Lorelai waved goodbye to her best friend and closed the front door making her way up the stairs in order to find Luke. He was lying on the bed, reading when she came into the bedroom.

"Hey there," she said flopping down on the bed next to him.

"Hey there, yourself." He replied putting his book on the bedside table. "So did you guys have a good talk?"

"Yeah. Thanks for giving us some privacy. We don't have as much time for a good girl talk as we did before."

"I'm sure you'll have more time again, when you've got a good routine going at the Inn."

Lorelai frowned. "Don't you think we should have developed a routine by now?"

"Nah, don't worry. It took me over a year until I had everything really figured out at the diner."

"Really?" she looked at him surprised.

"Oh yeah. And it'd probably taken me a lot longer without Buddy's help. But you shouldn't worry about the Inn. You have Sookie and you've done all this before for the Independence Inn. It's just that most of your staff is new and it takes a while for them to get used to everything. And you have a different capacity as you had at the Independence Inn, so basically you and Sookie have to do some readjusting as well. And your numbers are going up right?"

Lorelai nodded at that.

"See, you're doing a great job with the Inn. Don't worry about it."

Lorelai kissed him soundly. "Thanks for saying all this."

Luke smiled at her. "Well, it's the truth and you have every right to be proud of what you've accomplished with Sookie."

"Yeah, it's been quite a year. And you're right, I am really happy about how far we've come so far with Dragonfly."

"Good, you should be. Are you hungry?"

"I'm even more hungry than I was before," she told him patting her belly.

Luke smiled at her gesture. "Come on. I'll make you a sandwich." He told her patting her knee.

* * *

The next night, Lorelai kissed Luke goodbye on the front porch. "You sure you can't stay tonight?"

"I wish I could but I have early deliveries tomorrow morning and on Wednesday before we leave and I need to pack for our trip. And you need to check in on the Inn before we leave Wednesday morning."

"I know, I know. I Just hate it when you're not with me at night."

"Yeah, well, I don't like it either. Just remember that we'll have a whole weekend where we don't have to think about work and where we'll have a lot of time to ourselves."

Luke put his arms around her, holding her close to his body, while she rested her hands on his chest playing with the collar of his jacket.

"You're right. I'm really looking forward to spending some time alone with you."

"Dirty."

Lorelai rolled her eyes at him. "I mean without anyone from the diner or the Inn or this nosy town around to interrupt us."

Luke smiled at her. "I know what you meant, and again 'dirty'."

"Maybe." She said with a smirk.

Luke pulled her towards his body and kissed her soft and sensually. Lorelai used to collar of his jacket to pull him even closer to her body, deepening their kisses. She let her tongue softly touch his bottom lip, begging for entrance, which he gladly granted. Their tongues swirled around each other, soft moans occasionally escaping their throats, until they were completely out of breath.

Lorelai rested her forehead on Luke's chest when they broke apart, to which Luke responded by resting his cheek against her forehead and pulling her into a tight embrace. For a couple of moments they simply enjoyed being close to each other while letting their breaths regain a normal rhythm.

"I should probably go," he said after a while, although he'd much rather stayed like this for another while, but he knew that if he'd stay any longer, he'd never make it back to the diner.

"Yeah, you probably should," Lorelai mumbled into his chest, but didn't let go of him.

"Am I gonna see you at the diner tomorrow." He asked her, gently brushing his hand over her back.

Lorelai lifted her head off of his chest and looked up at him. "I'm not sure. I have to go to work early if I want to leave in the afternoon in order to pack my stuff for our trip. I'll see if I can make it."

"Don't worry about it. Take your time with all your stuff at the Inn and if you have some time left, I'll see you at the diner, otherwise I will see you Wednesday morning when I pick you up." Lorelai pouted a little. She hated not being able to see hi for a while day, but she also knew that she still had a lot to do at the Inn and didn't know if she could make it to the diner. But as he had said earlier they had long weekend to look forward to.

"And don't pack too much stuff!" he added.

"So two, small suitcases then, got it." She said grinning up at him.

"One, small one."

"One and a little bag?"

"Yeah, fine," he told her knowing that he'd be standing out there till dawn arguing with her, if he didn't give in.

"Thanks, babe. As much as I hate to say this. You should probably go."

"Yup, you're right. Just remember we have a long weekend to look forward to."

"I will." She stepped on her tiptoes and placed a few soft kisses on his lips. "I love you." She whispered against his lips.

"I love you," he leaned down for another kiss.

They said their goodbyes and Lorelai watched his disappearing figure for a little while, before stepping back into the house, preparing herself for a whole day and two lonely nights she wouldn't be able to spend with Luke.

_**Dragonfly Inn, the next morning…**_

* * *

"I need coffee," Lorelai almost yelled as she walked into the kitchen of the Dragonfly Inn and slumped down on the nearest stool.

"Almost done," Sookie told her and walked over to her best friend who was resting her head on her hand. "What are you doing here this early, Lorelai? It's barely after eight."

"Uh, I came in early to get all the paperwork done for the front desk staff before I leave for the weekend. What are you doing here so early?" She asked looking up at Sookie.

Sookie walked over to the coffee machine and poured a fresh cup for Lorelai. "Davey has a cold and so he woke up early. And since Jackson had left early, because he had early deliveries, I took care of Davey, and then I couldn't go back to sleep. So I got him ready, brought him to Jackson and came here."

"The curse of early deliveries."

"Luke, too." She handed Lorelai the cup.

"Yeah, thanks." Lorelai sighed. "I hate it when he can't stay over because he has early deliveries."

"Aww, that's so cute." Sookie giggled. "But why didn't you stay at his place then?"

Lorelai sighed again. "Because I usually wake up when he gets up, which I don't really mind, but when I fall back asleep again I tend to oversleep or end up having breakfast with Luke after the early morning rush, if I don't oversleep. Anyway. Long story short, I never get out of the diner before ten when I'm staying at his place and I want to leave a little early today, so I can pack my stuff for our trip to Maine."

"Are you excited?" Sookie asked her giddily.

"Yeah, I am." Lorelai replied smiling a little shyly. "I'm so happy that we can finally have some time alone, together."

"But aren't you staying with his family?" Sookie said a little confused. "Or did you not tell me something?"

"No, we are, but it's just them, you know. No one from the diner or the Inn to disturb us. I mean, not that I don't like seeing you, it's just…"

"I know what you mean," Sookie told her smiling. "Enjoy your long weekend with Luke and don't worry about the Inn. We've got everything under control, and I'm here most of the time anyway."

"Thanks. So just in case I don't see you anymore, 'Happy Thanksgiving'," Lorelai got up and hugged her best friend tightly.

"'Happy Thanksgiving' and say 'hi' to Luke for me. And I wanna know everything when you get back." Sookie told her grinning.

"We'll see about that." She said grinning back at Sookie. "Say 'hi' to Jackson for me and give Davey a kiss from me."

"I will, have fun."

"Thanks," Lorelai said and walked back towards her office.

* * *

­­­**_Later… around noon…_**

There was a soft knock at the door to Lorelai's office.

"Come in," she said sounding exhausted, not even looking up from her work.

The door opened and Luke poked his head inside. "Hey."

"Hey! What are you doing here?" Lorelai asked him surprised. She got up to greet him, her mood instantly better.

"I brought lunch. I mean, since you didn't know if you could make it to the diner, I thought I'd…"

Luke wasn't able to finish his sentence. Lorelai had already pulled him down to her level and kissed him.

"You're the best!" she exclaimed when they broke apart.

"So, I'm guessing your hungry then?"

"I'm starving. I didn't have anything but coffee so far."

"Why didn't you let Sookie make you some breakfast."

"'Cause I was too busy. I didn't really have time to eat anything yet."

"Well, then sit down. I've got burgers and fries and some pie for dessert."

"Yay! Just what I need. Hey how come you don't have to be at the diner?"

"Lane and Caesar have everything covered, so I thought I'd go have lunch with my beautiful girlfriend."

Lorelai smiled. "Thanks. I like it when you call me your girlfriend."

"Yeah, well. I kinda like it, too."

"Come on, let's eat." She said and tugged him towards the couch that was standing against the wall in her office.

"So, how much longer are you gonna be here?" Luke asked her while unpacking their food.

"Not much longer. I'm pretty much done, I just need to sign some stuff that's all."

There was a knock at the door, just when they had finished their lunch.

Lorelai sighed. "So much for a quiet lunch… Come in!"

"There's someone to see you in the lobby, Miss Gilmore."

"Thanks, Danny." She said to her employee who nodded and closed the door.

"I'll let you get back to work and then I can actually come to your place tonight. Caesar said he'd take over for me tomorrow morning."

"Really? That's great!"

"Yep, it is."

"Ok, I'll walk you out, since I have to go to the lobby anyway."

Luke smiled at her and placed his arm around her shoulder. Lorelai put her arm around his waist and they made their way to the lobby together.

Lorelai stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the person waiting for them in the lobby. "Great, just what I needed," she said only audible to Luke.

"Do you want me to leave?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No, stay."

Luke pulled her even closer to his side and together they approached the person in the lobby, who had been waiting for Lorelai.

**_TBC…__

* * *

_ **

AN2: Sorry to leave you guys with a cliffhanger again, but it's so much more fun that way :D

So what do you think? Please review ;)


	20. Laying low…

**CHAPTER 20 –Laying low…**

**Disclaimer: See first chapter, sadly I still don't own anything.**

**AN: **_Hey everyone, sorry that I took so long to update. I had a massive writer's block the whole week. But now another chapter of my stories is done and I think I'm pretty happy about how it turned out- I hope you will be as well. Anyways, thanks so much for all your sweet reviews. That was actually the first time I got 10 reviews for one of my chapters proud and maybe even more of you are in the mood to review this chapter. Special thanks for leaving me a review for chapter 19 goes to:**Baby Girl Geller-Green**__**; Luke Nlorelaifan; Magical Princess; Courtney; llanoestacado; everwoodgirl04; Suz22; Kylie1403; Phoebe4u and last but not least **_**_ProFfeSseR_****_ (thanks for all your input)._**

**Sooo… ENJOY and tell me what you think. **

**P.S: Why don't you guys tell me if you where right about the person in the lobby. It's always so much fun to leave the readers speculating about something. ;)**

**CHAPTER 20 – Laying low…**

As soon as he saw Lorelai and Luke approaching him, he got up and stepped over to them.

"Lorelai."

They stopped in front of him "Dad," Lorelai said. "What do you want here?" Her voice sounded emotionless and cold. Luke was standing right next to her, with his arm protectively around her shoulders.

"Luke."

"Mr. Gilmore." Luke replied pulling Lorelai closer to him.

"What do you want here dad?" Lorelai said with a strong voice.

Richard faced his daughter after looking at the floor for a moment. "I came to talk to you, Lorelai."

"You had your chance to say something when I came to talk to you and mom, and you didn't it. I don't have anything else to say to you or mom. So if you'd excuse me please, I have to get back to work." She turned around without looking at her father and headed towards her office.

"Lorelai," Richard called after her and was about to follow her, but Luke stopped him.

"Don't you think you've done enough damage already?"

Richard shook his head. "That's why I came here, I wanted to apologize for what has happened." Richard sounded desperate, but Luke still didn't let him pass.

"Look, I don't know why you can't accept your daughter the way she is, and approve of what's she done in her life, all I know is that she was heartbroken and crying her eyes out when she came back from your place."

Richard's expression fell, when Luke told him about all this.

"I've never seen Lorelai like this. And if you really care about your daughter you'd better leave her alone for a while, let her calm down a little."

Richard took a step back. "You really care about my daughter, don't you?"

"Yes, I do. She's the most important person in my life."

Richard simply nodded, he didn't know what to say. "Maybe you are right, maybe I should give her some time."

"You should."

Richard turned around and started towards the front door of the Dragonfly Inn, he knew that there was nothing he could do at the moment. He truly regretted not having said anything when Lorelai came to talk to them. When he had reached the door he turned around and addressed Luke one more time. "Take good care of my daughter."

"I will. I always have." Luke replied and watched Richard leaving the Inn. He didn't know what to think of what had just happened in the lobby of the Dragonfly. Richard seemed like he actually regretted the events of the past weekend. Luke hoped that Richard would actually approach his daughter again, after giving her some time to digest their recent fight.

Luke walked back to Lorelai's office and went straight inside, not bothering to knock first. He saw her standing in front of the window, her back facing him, arms crossed over her chest. He closed the door and stepped behind her, resting his hands on her shoulders. "Lorelai…"

Not turning around she said, "How dare he come here after what has happened last weekend? The whole time my mother stood there in the middle of the living room, saying all these horrible things to me, he just sat there. He just sat there and said nothing. Not one word. Not one freakin' word!"

"I know, honey, I know." He gently rubbed her shoulders and turned her around to face him. Tears were glistening in her eyes.

"Maybe he really did come to apologize."

"Oh, please! Are you on his side now or what?" she said stepping away from him."

"No, of course I'm not. I just hate to see you suffering like this. I know how hurt you are when you're fighting with your parents."

"Don't you understand?" she yelled at him. "This isn't like all the times before! I've never experienced something like this before with them. I never thought that my mother would be capable to say all these things to me. I probably should have known though, 'cause that's just the way Emily Gilmore is." Tears were streaming down her face now. "But after all, they are my parents and that's why it freakin' hurts so much! I hate them for making me feel like this. It hurts that they can't just love me the way I am. It just hurts!"

Luke stepped towards Lorelai, trying to pull her into his arms, but Lorelai stepped away from him.

"Hey, come here." He stepped towards her again. "Don't shut me out. I'm not the bad guy. I'm on your side, remember?"

Lorelai let out a muffled sob and stepped into his arms, making her calm down immediately.

"I know. I'm sorry, Luke." She told him with a tear strained voice. "Can we just go home? I just need to give Michel some papers and then we can go."

"Sure, I just need to get my stuff from the apartment for our trip, but I'll walk you home first."

Lorelai smiled at him, wiping the last of her tears off of her cheeks, and hugged him tightly. "I'm sorry for yelling at you."

Luke shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Sometimes you just need to get some of the anger out. As long as you feel a little better now."

"It helps, but I'm not sure if I'm feeling better. It just hurts, but I will feel better eventually."

"Yeah, you will. And remember that I'm always here for you, no matter what. You can always talk to me."

Lorelai smiled up at him, their arms still around each other, she stepped on her tiptoes and placed a soft kiss on his lips. "I know, I'm glad you're here."

"That goes for both sides." He told her and returned her gesture.

"Could you bring some dinner with you? We can watch a movie together and call it an early night. You know, so we can leave early tomorrow morning?"

"Sounds good," he said and helped her getting her stuff together.

They went into the lobby where Lorelai handed the paper stuff to Michel and gave him some last instructions. After that they walked off towards Lorelai's home.

**Later that night…**

Lorelai had just opened the door for Luke, when the phone rang.

"Uh, you put the food in the living room and I'll get the phone."

"Allright," Luke replied and walked into the living room, while Lorelai ran into the kitchen, hoping that that was the last place she remembered seeing the phone.

After a couple more rings she finally found the phone on the counter under a few newspapers, she had meant to throw out.

"Hello?"

"Hey, mom! Couldn't find the phone again?" Rory said, amused at her mother's disorder.

"No, I knew where it was, it just took me a little while to get to it, that's all." She told her daughter, hoping she wouldn't notice her little white lie, which really wasn't one, because she had to open the door for Luke first, but of course Rory knew her mom too well.

"So what's up with you? Yale still standing?"

"Yep. It is. Actually I called to talk to you about Thanksgiving." Rory told her mom sounding a little unsure.

"Oh, ok. What about it?" Lorelai sensed the uncertainty in her daughter's voice, but was hoping that Rory hadn't decided on not coming to Maine. Lorelai walked into the living room and sat down next to Luke, who had spread out their food on the living room table.

"Well," Rory started, "I was wondering if the offer to join you in Maine is still up?"

"Of course it is, sweetie! We'd love to have you there!" Lorelai's mood brightened up immediately, knowing that she would be able to spend at least some of the Thanksgiving weekend with her daughter.

"So can I ask what's changed your mind?"

"I never said I wouldn't come, I just hadn't decided. And besides, I just want to be able to spend some time with you… and Luke over Thanksgiving. I kinda miss our little Thanksgiving traditions, you know?"

"Yeah, I miss that, too."

"Is it ok if I just drive up there like Friday morning?"

"Yeah, sure. Absolutely. I already emailed you the address, just in case."

"Really? Thanks. I haven't had time to my mails lately."

"Sure, babe. I can't wait to see you. You haven't been home for almost a month now." Lorelai leaned back on the couch and rested her back against Luke's chest, who put his arm around her waist in response.

"I know, mom. I'm really sorry about that. I just had so much to do for school and the paper. I've hardly had any time off the last couple of weeks."

"You don't have to apologize for that, hon. School work always comes first."

"I know, thanks mom. So… when are you guys driving up there?

"Tomorrow morning. We're just gonna have some dinner and watch a movie. I think we're gonna call it an early night, so we can leave early tomorrow morning."

"Like Luke-time early?"

"Yeah," Lorelai had to smile at her daughter's use of words, "around seven."

"I hope Luke knows to provide enough food and coffee."

"I told him he has to. Otherwise we will have to stop for coffee a lot, and I'm sure he wouldn't like that." Lorelai grinned at Luke who just rolled his eyes at her."

"Good. Well I let you get back to your dinner and I'll see you guys on Friday."

"Allright, babe. Take care, I love you."

"Love you, too. Say 'hi' to Luke for me."

"I will, bye hon."

"Bye, mom."

Both of them hung up their phones.

Lorelai turned towards Luke. "Guess what?" Lorelai said beaming.

"Is Rory coming?"

"Yeah, she is." Lorelai told him and hugged him happily. "At least we can keep up some of our Thanksgiving tradition."

"Which would be… ?"

"Having dinner with you, silly."

"Ahh." Luke said smiling at her happiness.

"And honestly, that's the best part of it anyway."

"Really?" Luke asked her a little surprised.

"Of course! We love your food and… we love you." She told him, her expression turning more serious. "Dinner with you has always been the highlight of our Thanksgiving."

"Wow, I didn't know that." Luke was amazed and over the moon happy that their favorite part of Thanksgiving was dinner with him.

"Well, now you know." She said and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

"Yeah, now I know." He said smiling at her.

Lorelai got up from the couch and walked over to the dvds. "Which movie do you wanna watch?"

"I don't care."

Lorelai rolled her eyes at him. "Ok, how about 'When Harry met Sally'?"

Luke shrugged with his shoulders. "Yeah, ok."

Lorelai put the dvd in and joined him on the couch, digging in to her food.

Still chewing on her burger she turned towards Luke, "So are you sure we can't leave a tiny little bit later tomorrow morning?"

Luke had to repress a smile. "No, sorry. We're leaving at seven. Not a minute later."

"Please, preeettyyy please." She said giving him the puppy eyes.

"Nope, sorry."

Lorelai started to pout and Luke pulled her into his arms. "You can sleep in the car, you know? And I promised you to have coffee and food in the car for you. And you can always take a nap when we get there, so stop pouting already."

"Ok, ok. You promise to have lots and lots of coffee in the car?"

"I told you I would, don't worry." He told her and leaned down to kiss her. "So can we finish watching the movie now?" he asked her putting the trash into the paper back from the diner, that was sitting next to the couch.

"Yeah, sure." Luke leaned against the side of the couch and stretched his legs out so that Lorelai could lean against his chest. He pulled her closer to his body, as soon as she was settled against his body, and rested his hand on her belly. A gesture that had become part of their routine whenever they were settled on the couch together, enjoying each other's company.

A little further into the movie, Luke felt Lorelai's body relax in his arms and soon after her breath had accustomed to a steady rhythm. She had fallen asleep, while watching a movie with him. This had happened more and more over the last couple of weeks, maybe even months now. Ever since the Dragonfly Inn kept her busy for most of the time. Ever since she had come home or into the diner late into the evening, totally exhausted from work. It was time for her to get some time off in order to relax a little from the stress they had had in the first few months after the opening of the Dragonfly Inn. More than once, Luke had told her to slow down and take a day or even just a half day off, but she had always told him that she, as the manger and owner of the Inn, couldn't just take a day off, during such an important time. Luke knew that there was no point in arguing with her about that, but now he was glad that she was willing to take a couple of days off of work and just enjoy Thanksgiving with him and his family in Maine.

He reached for the remote and turned the TV off. Lorelai stirred slightly in his arms.

"Hey, come on let's go to bed," He softly whispered into her ear.

"Can't move. I'm soo tired."

"Come on." He sat up and tried to get her into a sitting position as well, but all she did was put her arms around his neck and settle back against his chest. Luke sighed and stood up, taking her into his arms in the process. Walking up the stairs he decided to come back down again in a few minutes to turn the lights off and lock the doors.

Upstairs in the bedroom, he gently put her down on the bed, untangling her arms from his neck. He placed soft kiss on her forehead and told her that he would be back in a few minutes and that she should use the bathroom first. Lorelai mumbled an 'mhmm' into the sheets but didn't make any moves to actually get up from the bed. Luke smiled at her walked back downstairs in order to clean up their trash from dinner. He checked the doors again and walked back upstairs, turning off the lights on his way.

Lorelai, in the meantime, had actually managed to drag herself into the bathroom and was now tugged in under the covers, wearing his blue flannel shirt, that she had claimed to be in her possessions from now on.

Luke smiled at her sleeping figure, and after getting ready for bed himself, he stripped down to his boxers and got into bed next to Lorelai, who immediately snuggled up to his body when he did so. Luke placed a soft kiss on her forehead and soon followed her into dreamland.

TBC…

**AN2: Sorry if this chapter turned out a little more boring than the other ones. I promise that the next chapter, which will be the drive and the arrival in Maine and maybe some other things ;), will be more exciting again. Still, tell me what you think about this one. I always look forward to all your reviews.**


	21. Maine

Chapter 21 – Maine 

**Disclaimer: See first chapter. **

**Rating for this chapter: M! (sexual content)**

**AN1: **_I know, I know, I promised to update much sooner. I'm horrible._

_I'm starting college in about two and a half weeks and I had so much preparation to do for that. But the most important reason why it took me soo long to update is because I finally brought some passion (if you know what I mean;) ) back into the story and this stuff is a lot harder to write than the normal stuff. I didn't want it to sound to slutty or too … I don't know. Anyway I think I did a pretty good job and I hope you think so as well. _

_And I hope to get a lot of reviews. I'm getting about ten reviews per chapter and but I'm on the alert listof almost30 people! And more than 40 people have me on their favorites list! Now I'm not saying that you should write a really long review, one short sentence would be enough already even just one word! I don't care. I always try to leave reviews on the stories that are on my alert list._

_But nonetheless there are a few people who constantly leave reviews. Thanks to all of you and especially thanks to those, who left a review for my last chapter: Allways a huge 'thank you' to **ProFfeSseR:** your opinion is so important to me; **that70slover:** thank you soo much; **everwoodgirl04: **thanks for such a nice review, makes me feel special ;) ;** Courtney: **glad it wasn't boring ;) doens't it feel good to be right? drama keeps a story alive we don't want it sound too mushy; **LukeNlorelaifan: **again thanks for reviewing!; **Suz22: **thanks a lot and don't worry as long as you review I don't care when you do it ;) ;**irishdancingvolleyballchick: **thanks for your review ;) ; **ultimategilmoregirl: **that's a very nice compliment, I can totally understand you're feelings for pie! ;**Baby Girl Gellar-Green: **Thanks so much for reviewing again, that story in the office was one of my favorites in that chapter; **RogueHoney: **Thanks for reviewing, tell me what you think about the way I let Jess turn out; and last but not least: **J.Stone: **Thanks so much for reviewing chapter 10! I'm glad you enjoyed it ;p I hope I didn't forget anyone, and if I did, I apologize big time, but I'm only human_.

_On with the story! This actually turned out a lot longer than any of my other chapters! And PLEASE review begging on my knees_

**ENJOY!**

**Chapter 21 – Maine**

'Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!'

"Uuugghhh! Wha the hell!" Lorelai mumbled into her pillow.

Luke switched off the alarm quickly and soothingly stroked over her arm and gently pulled the covers back over her shoulders with the other arm. "Shh, go back to sleep. You don't have to get up yet."

"I hate you for waking me up, I really, really hate you." Lorelai mumbled into her pillow again.

"I know, I know, go back to sleep for a little while." Luke brushed a strand of hair out of her face and placed a soft kiss on her cheek.

Lorelai patted his head behind her and snuggled back into the sheets.

Luke smiled at her and got out of bed.

An hour later, Luke walked back into the bedroom, fully dressed and carrying a cup of coffee that he placed on the dresser opposite the bed. He walked over to her side of the bed and knelt down in front of her, gently stroking her cheek with the back of his hand.

"Good morning, sleepyhead. Time to wake up."

"Go away."

"Come on, get up. I'll make you some pancakes as soon as you get up."

"With bacon and eggs?" Lorelai mumbled into her pillow.

"Yeah, with eggs and bacon."

"Will you bring me some coffee?" She asked, facing him now without opening her eyes yet."

"I already brought you some. It's on your dresser."

"Thanks."

"Welcome. Will you get up now?"

"Only when I get a kiss."

"I guess I wouldn't mind a kiss either," Luke smirked at her.

At this Lorelai finally opened her eyes and smiled at Luke. "Morning."

"Good morning." Luke rested his arms on the bed frame and leaned into her, kissing her tenderly.

Lorelai placed her hand on the back of his neck and deepened the kiss.

Luke placed his hand on her cheek, gently sweeping his tongue over her bottom lip, asking for entrance.

Lorelai gladly granted him access and a soft moan escaped their throats as soon as their tongues met. Lorelai knocked Luke's cap off of his head and pulled him on the bed with her. As soon as he was next to her, his free hand started to wander downwards to the hem of her shirt, where he caressed her soft skin. They kept kissing like that for a while until they had to break apart for the need of oxygen.

Luke leaned his forehead against hers. "Wow." He said still panting slightly.

"Yeah, wow." Lorelai replied and started kissing him again, but Luke pulled away, resting his free hand against her cheek.

"As much as I'd like to continue this, we have to get going."

Lorelai looked at him with a pouting expression. "Can't we leave a little later? I miss making out with you in the morning."

"I know me, too." He told her leaning down to kiss her. "But we have to get going. I promise you that we will have enough time to make out over the next couple of days." Luke said raising his eyebrows suggestively.

"Dirty." Lorelai giggled.

"I know, that was my intention."

"Luke." Lorelai pulled him down by his neck for one more kiss.

"I love you," she told him when they broke apart.

"I love you, too." Luke gently stroke her cheek and bent down for another kiss. Then he got off the bed and pulled Lorelai up with him, into his arms. He hugged her tightly and rested his chin on top of her head. "Why don't you go shower and I'll make us some breakfast."

"All right," Lorelai replied reluctantly and dragged her still sleepy body into the bathroom, taking the coffee, Luke had brought with him earlier, with her.

About forty-five minutes later, Luke had stored the rest of their luggage in the jeep and they were just about to leave. Lorelai walked out of the house, "Did you bring everything to the car?" she asked him before locking the door. Luke told her that he had, so she walked over to the passenger side of the car and got in next to him. "You know I actually like the fact that for a change I'm not the one who has to do the driving." She told him getting comfortable in her seat.

"I know, that's why I offered to drive."

"And that was really sweet of you." Lorelai looked back to the house for a second to check if she had really closed all the windows. Luke started the car and drove out of her driveway.

"So where's the coffee?" she asked looking at him, when the house was out of sight.

"You can't be serious. You just had two cups at the house."

"I know." Lorelai rolled her eyes at him. "I didn't say I wanted any, I just wanted to know where it is, so in case I want any, I know where you put it."

"It's in the bag behind my seat. As well as bagels with cream cheese and scones."

"Aww, you're the best boyfriend ever!" Lorelai squealed and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"I only brought it, so we wouldn't have to stop every half hour because you want some coffee or something to eat. The only stops we will make are for using the bathroom."

"I told you that was fine with me as long as you provided food and coffee, and since you did I won't need that much stops. So thanks for all that stuff." She said putting her hand on his leg and smiling at him.

Luke looked at her briefly and then squeezed her hand with his own. "You're welcome."

"So are you looking forward to our weekend?" He asked her.

"Very. I'm glad to get out of town for a little while. I mean, not that I don't like our town or my job, it's just…"

"I know what you mean," he told her squeezing her hand.

"Yeah, I've just been so busy at the Inn the whole time and I didn't really have much time to be with Rory and especially with you."

"Don't worry about that, Lorelai. I know how busy you've been with the Inn. You have a new business and you have to invest a lot of time at the Inn."

"I know, still, I'm really glad we could get away for a while. You know, spend some time together, with you family and especially with Rory."

"Yeah, me too. I haven't seen my family or Rory for quite a while."

"Yeah, I know."

"I mean, I'm not that fond of spending that much time with TJ, but I haven't seen Jess in such a long time. I don't even know what he's up to at the moment."

"Well, this weekend will be a good time to find out. I'm sure you'll guys will have some time to talk."

"Yeah." Suddenly Luke got a little quiet.

"You ok?" Lorelai asked, touching his knee.

"Oh, yeah."

Lorelai knew that he wasn't fine, but she knew that the car wasn't the best place to have some quality talks. She decided to let the topic rest for now and asked him about it later when they were in Maine.

"So how much longer 'till we get there?"

"I'd say about two hours. Depends on how much snow there is."

"Snow?" Lorelai beamed at him happily.

"Yeah. There usually is quite a lot of snow in Maine around Thanksgiving."

"This weekend is gonna be awesome. I have my boyfriend with his family and my daughter around me and on top of that, there is snow." Lorelai sighed contently and made herself more comfortable. She turned her body towards Luke, rested her head on the back of the seat and closed her eyes.

Luke glanced at her and smiled. "Tired?" He whispered.

"Mhmm, a little."

"Why don't you sleep for a while?"

"Yeah, I think I will." She yawned.

About two and a half hours later they had almost reached their destination. Lorelai was still sleeping soundly in the seat next to Luke, but the world around them had changed a little. Luke had slowed down a little, because the world around them was now covered in a thick layer of white, glistening snow. Lorelai had curled up on her seat and during a quick stop at a gas station Luke had put a blanket around her, which he had also placed in the car before they had left Stars Hollow.

Since they were only a couple of minutes away from their destination Luke decided to wake Lorelai.

Keeping his eyes on the road he gently squeezed her hand. "Hey, wake up, sleepyhead, we're almost there."

"Five more minutes," Lorelai mumbled to him.

"Hey, we're almost there, open you're eyes." Luke tried again.

"Why?"

"Because I think you'll like what you see when you open your eyes. It's white and sparkling."

It took a few moments for Lorelai what Luke was talking about, but then her head rose quickly and she looked out the window. "It's snowing!" she exclaimed smiling widely. "Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" she asked him pouting.

"Because I didn't want to wake you up, you looked you could use some sleep."

"Aww, that's sweet," she said rubbing her still sleepy eyes.

Right at that moment Luke steered into a driveway and stopped the car in front of a big wooden house, which was now also covered with a thick layer of snow.

"Wow, that's a beautiful house, and so big." Lorelai said, taking in her surroundings.

"Yeah it is pretty big actually. Liz wanted to have some additional rooms for guests and children, in case they decided to have more children."

"Wow, that's nice."

"Yeah, I guess." Luke nodded.

"You don't like the idea of TJ being the father of your future nieces and nephews?" Lorelai asked him reading his expression immediately.

"No, not really. But I don't think I have any word in that department."

"I don't think so either." Lorelai said smiling at him.

"Come on, let's get our stuff inside."

They got out of the car and to the back of the jeep to get their bags.

"Man, it's much colder here than it is at home."

"Yeah, it told you it would be. You'll be fine once you've changed into your warmer stuff."

"Yeah."

Just at that moment the door of the house opened and Liz came out to greet them.

"Hey there strangers," Liz greeted them when they stepped on the porch.

"Hey little sis," Luke said and embraced his sister in a big hug. "Haven't seen you in quite a while."

"I know, I know, where so glad you were able to come." She replied, hugging him back.

"We're glad to be here." Lorelai chirped in.

"Hey, Lorelai," Liz said giving her a hug as well.

"Hey, Liz." She smiled at her.

"Come in, come in, it's freaking cold here." She said ushering them inside.

Inside Luke put their stuff next to door for the moment and they followed Liz into the living room where TJ was watching TV.

"Hey TJ, look who's here!" Liz said, trying to get TJ's attention.

TJ got up from the couch and stood next to Liz. "Hey, Luke." He shook Luke's hand.

"Hey, TJ, you remember Lorelai, right?" He asked him, reintroducing them again.

"Yeah, of course. You were Luke's date at our wedding. So he actually managed to keep you, huh. Let me tell ya, I think you're much hotter than that Nicole chick was."

"TJ!" Liz and Luke said at the same time.

"Sorry," TJ said taking a step back and holding his hands up in defense. "It's the truth." He mumbled towards Liz, who hit him lightly on the arm in response.

"So," Luke said trying to change the subject. "Is Jess here already?"

"Yeah, he is." Liz told them. "He's just getting some wood from the back porch for the fireplace.

Just at that moment the back door on the other side of the living room opened and Jess walked inside, carrying a large pile of firewood. Not noticing Luke and Lorelai, because he wasn't really able to look over the pile of wood, he placed it in front of the fireplace and turned around, seeming surprised to see them standing on the other side of the room.

"Oh, hey." He said and came towards them.

Luke stepped towards him and hugged him, which surprised Jess for a second but then he gladly returned the hug, taking it as a sign that his uncle didn't hate him completely. Lorelai watched them and smiled, knowing that Luke was much happier to see Jess than he would admit right now.

"How ya doing?" Luke asked releasing him from the hug.

"Pretty good, you?"

"I'm pretty good, too."

"Good."

Luke looked at his nephew for a few more seconds, recognizing that he pretty much looked the same since he had last seen him, and then turned towards Lorelai.

"Oh, hey, uhh, you know Lorelai." He gestured towards her.

"Yeah, of course, do you think I have Alzheimer's?" He said reaching his hand out for her to shake which she took smiling at him, with mixed feelings.

Luke just ignored his nephew's last comment.

"Hey, Jess, good to see you."

"Yeah, you too." He said looking down to the floor not knowing what else to say. He was sure that Lorelai wasn't too excited to see him after all that had happened between him and Rory.

"All right," Liz broke the somewhat uncomfortable silence. "Jess, why don't you bring their stuff upstairs and show them their room so that they can rest a little for a while after the drive.

"Nah, that's fine." Luke told her. "Just tell me which room we are in and I'll bring our stuff up."

"All right, it's the room at the end of the hall on the left when you get upstairs. Take your time. The three of us have to go back to the Renaissance Faire."

"Oh, really?" Lorelai looked at them surprised. "I thought the Faire was closed around this time of the year."

"Well, it was over the last couple of years, but there are still so many tourist out here they we decided to keep it running until the beginning of December. But we'll be back around six or seven tonight. It's closing earlier tonight and we're closed tomorrow for the holiday. So we'll see you in a couple of hours."

"I'll make some dinner for when you guys get back tonight." Luke told his sister.

"Aww, you don't have to do that bro', you're supposed to be our guest over the weekend."

"It's no big deal. Really, it's the least I can do."

"Well, thanks." Liz said getting her stuff for the faire. "So we'll see you tonight. Come on boys." She said turning towards TJ and Jess. Jess obviously wasn't too happy to help them out, but didn't say anything about it.

"Yeah, we'll see you tonight," Lorelai said waving goodbye to them. "So, you wanna go bring our stuff upstairs and lay down for a while? You must be tired from the drive."

"Yeah, why not. Come on." He said getting their stuff and walking up the stairs with Lorelai following close behind him.

Upstairs they walked into the room they were staying in and Lorelai let herself fall onto the bed. Luke watched her and smiled and after he had put their bags into the walk-in closet he lay down next to her on the bed. Lorelai immediately scooted closer to him and rested her head on his chest while he put his arm around her shoulders, and pulled her closer to his body.

For a couple of minutes they simply enjoyed the silence and the comfort of being in each other's arms.

"Do you hear that?" Lorelai whispered, looking up at Luke.

"No, what is it?" he whispered back.

"Exactly my point, I don't hear a thing."

"Ahh, that." Luke said. "I like that it's so quiet." He added after a couple of moments.

"Yeah me, too. I'm just not used to it being so quiet. I was so busy with the Inn all the time that I hardly had any quiet moments, where I could just sit down and enjoy it."

"Yeah, I know." He replied, kissing the top of her head.

Lorelai snuggled closer to him. "Luke?"

"Mhmm?" he mumbled without opening his eyes.

"This is really nice."

"Mhmm, it is."

Lorelai propped herself up on his chest resting her chin on top of her hands which she had placed on his chest.

Luke opened his eyes and smiled at her. "Hi."

"Hi." She moved up a little more and kissed him softly.

Luke put his arms around her body and pulled her upwards so that she was almost lying on top of him. Lorelai gently caressed his cheek with her left hand while roaming his body with her other hand. She softly glided her tongue over his bottom lip eager to deepen the kiss. A soft moan escaped their throats as soon as their tongues met. Luke changed their positions, so that he was on top, when their kiss became more passionate.

"What time did Liz say they would be back?" Lorelai asked panting when they stopped kissing for the need of oxygen.

"Not for a couple of hours." Luke told her also panting, while he trailed kisses down her throat.

A soft moan escaped the back of Lorelai's throat when he had reached the magic spot between her neck and shoulder. "Good, that's good." She said in between breaths.

"Yeah? Why?" he looked at her with a smirk on his face.

"Oh you'll see." She said grinning back at him. "Come here." She pulled him back down to her for a passionate kiss, working to get his jacket off of his shoulders.

When he was finally out of his jacket she rolled them over again, straddling his hips. Still kissing, Luke helped her to shrug out of her coat as well. As soon as he had gotten rid of her jacket her pulled her sweater over her head and began to unbutton the buttons on her blouse, brushing it off her shoulders as well. Lorelai leaned back down and captured her lips with his, simply enjoying the feeling of his lips on hers. Both of them had been really busy over the last couple of months and many nights were spent apart because Lorelai had come home very late and had to leave for work really early in the morning. Since she always tended to come into work later after spending a night at Luke's she had slept at her own place a lot. This was probably the longest time in over two weeks they were able to spend time alone together without having to rush because of work.

After a few more minutes of passionate kissing Lorelai sat back up, panting heavily. Luke smiled at her and let his hands roam over her body. He traced her soft curves beginning at her shoulders over the swell of her breasts and down over her tummy, to which she reacted with a sharp intake of breath at the contact, down to her legs. Lorelai smiled back at him and reached behind her to unclasp her bra. She brushed the straps down her arms and threw it on the floor next to the bed on top of the growing pile of clothes. Lorelai entwined her fingers with Luke's pulling him up into a sitting position.

"You're wearing way too much clothes," she whispered into his ear before placing a soft kiss on his neck, right below his earlobe. She sat back on his legs to have better access to his shirt. She could feel his growing arousal and shifted again to tease him a little bit.

"Geez, Lorelai." Luke said taking in a sharp breath.

"Yeah?" She asked him with an innocent smirk and began to unbutton his shirt, which also landed on the pile of clothes next to the bed, soon followed by his grey undershirt.

But Luke wasn't able to respond anymore when his bare chest came in contact with her bare breasts. He dipped his head down to her neck, kissing a trail down to the top of her left breast, leaving wet kisses all over her chest except for her breasts.

Lorelai led out a frustrated sigh and pulled him back up on eye level crashing her lips to his, their tongues dueling wildly. They both knew that this wasn't going to be slow and sensual love making. After such a long time of not being able to feel the other one their only desire was to make up for the last two weeks, leaving the slow love making for later occasions.

After they broke apart again, Luke started to kiss her neck again, but this time he didn't stop on his way down. Lorelai let out a loud moan when she felt his tongue finally making contact with her left nipple. Luke broke the contact again for a second to push her down on the bed. Holding her hands above her head he brought his lips back to her left breast while caressing the other one with his free hand. He altered between licking and softly sucking, driving her crazy in the process. Lorelai tried to get out of his grasp wanting to touch him but Luke didn't let go. He bend down to kiss her and whispered into her ear, "Just enjoy it, baby." Lorelai looked into his eyes, she knew that he would never do anything that she didn't want, and so she simply nodded and let out another groan when she felt his lips kissing a wet trail down her neck, in between her breast and down to her belly button. Lorelai decided that just because she couldn't touch him with her hands wouldn't make her stop from giving him some pleasure as well. With Luke straddling her and her hands held above her head with his left one, she wriggled her hips a little so Luke would rise up onto his knees a little more. Surprised by her actions Luke raised on his knees and gave Lorelai the opportunity to raise one of her knees, which immediately came in contact with his groin, slightly rubbing up and down in the process. This time it was Luke who let out a soft moan and loosened his grip on her hands. Lorelai freed her hands from his and immediately let them roam all over her body. She stopped at the waist of his jeans and worked to open them but was stopped, once again, by Luke's hands.

"Luke, plea…", but Luke had stopped her with his lips on hers. Lorelai snaked her arms around his neck. She brushed her tongue over his lips, asking for entrance, which Luke granted with a soft groan when their tongues touched again. She could feel his growing arousal against her leg. "Luke, please?" she panted breaking the kiss. Luke saw the desire in her eyes and got off the bed for a second quickly getting rid of his jeans and boxers, while Lorelai shrugged out of her jeans and panties as well, throwing them on the pile the next to the bed.

Lorelai looked up and caught Luke staring at her. "What?" she asked a little self-conscious, reaching for the sheets to cover her naked body.

"No don't," Luke said suddenly. "I'm sorry, it's just… you're so beautiful." He said looking straight into her eyes, smiling at her.

"Well, you don't look too bad yourself." She smirked at him. "Come here," she said holding her hand out to him. Luke crawled back onto the bed with her and took her hand intertwining their fingers. He lied down next to her and stroke her side with the back of his hand, to which Lorelai let out a soft giggle.

"Ticklish?" he grinned at her.

"Yeah. Hey come here." She said pulling him to her for a kiss.

Luke deepened the kiss and caressed her cheek with one hand while stroking her soft curls with his other hand.

Lorelai pulled him on top of her body and their kisses became more and more passionate with each second.

Luke started to kiss down her neck, but Lorelai pulled him back up to her, looking deeply into his eyes. "Luke, please, I need you." He kissed her again and gently separated her legs entering her in one swift motion. Lorelai gasped softly and both of them stopped their movements for a moment savoring the feeling of being joined together again. Lorelai pulled Luke down for a kiss, after a few moments. Luke looked into her eyes and after an approving nod from her, started to move slowly. Lorelai pulled him down for a kiss, pressing her body into his. She let her hands roam over his body, the strong muscles of his back and shoulders. Lorelai shifted her lower body and put her legs around his torso, causing Luke to enter her even deeper, the sensation of their joined bodies even more intense at this new ankle. Lorelai felt the familiar tingles in her stomach and encourage Luke to pick up the pace of their lovemaking a little more. Knowing that he couldn't last much longer, Luke captured her lips with his and slipped his tongue in between hers, deepening their kiss. He felt her breathing become heavier against his lips and after a few more long strokes and look into his eyes, that showed her nothing but endless love, Lorelai reached her climax with a load moan, pulling him over the edge with her. Filling her with his hot liquid he let out a load moan and collapsed on top of her, careful not to crush her under his weight.

Luke raised his head from her shoulder and kissed her tenderly, wiping away a few pearls of sweat that had formed on her forehead. "That was…."

"Yeah…" She replied, smiling into his shoulder. "I guess it was worth waiting, huh."

"Definitely." He told her placing another kiss on her cheek. "But that doesn't mean that I liked waiting that long."

"I know me either."

Luke wanted to move off of her, but Lorelai stopped him. "Not yet."

"Are you sure? I don't wanna hurt you." He asked her looking at her questioningly.

"You could never do that. I like it when you're that close to me. It makes me feel so safe."

Luke smiled at her and bend down to kiss her. "I love you."

"I love you, too." She told him smiling back at him.

After a few more moments Luke eventually rolled off of her and lay down next to her, pulling her into his arms immediately.

Lorelai sighed contently and placed a small kiss on his chest.

"Are you happy?" Luke asked her, gently squeezing her arm to get her attention.

"Very. I'm really glad we came here."

"Yeah?"

"Oh yeah, I like spending time with your family, and I think you like it too, even if you don't wanna admit it." She grinned up at him to which Luke only rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, well I don't really get to see them that much."

"I know, honey." Lorelai knew that she was right about him missing his family, even if he would never admit it to anyone.

They just lay there for another couple of minutes, enjoying the afterglow of their previous love making, until their peaceful moment was interrupted by the ringing of Lorelai's cell phone.

"Ugh," Luke groaned, "why did you bring that stupid thing?"

"No one except Rory knows that I brought my cell phone, and I will turn it off as soon as she gets here." She told him crawling out of bed to receive her phone from their luggage. Wrapped in the bed sheet she sat down back on the bed and leaned back into Luke's arm. "Hello, favorite daughter of mine." She said into the phone.

"_Wow, you are cheery, today."_

"Yeah, well…"

"_Do I wanna know why?"_

"Mhmm, I don't think you do." She said giggling into the phone.

"_Eww, mom!"_

"What?" she replied innocently? "I didn't say anything.

"_No, but you giggled, that's all I need to know."_

"Well, we didn't do anything unnatural, you know? And as far as I know you belong to that club as well."

Luke looked at her rolling his eyes.

"_That doesn't mean that I wanna know those certain things about you."_ Rory told her mom with a slightly disgusted undertone.

"Well was there a reason you called or did you just _not_ wanna talk about my sex life."

"_I'm just gonna ignore that. Actually I **did** call for a reason."_

"Well, are you gonna tell me about it?" Lorelai asked her leaning back into Luke's arm.

"_Grandma called me about twenty minutes ago and told me that they had to attend some charity function and that she had to cancel dinner."_

"She did what?" Lorelai asked surprised and sat up.

Luke, surprised by her sudden movement, sat up as well and asked her what was going on.

"Emily canceled on Rory," she whispered back to him.

"_She just called and told me that she was sorry, that it was so last minute to cancel on me and that she tried everything to get out of it but they had to attend that function."_

"Yeah, sure…" Lorelai snorted sarcastically. "And she didn't know about that before? I don't believe her. I'm gonna call her, I'm sure this is about our fight. God I hate when she's taking our problems out on you, that's so typ…"

"_Mom, its fine. I wasn't too fond of going there anyway. As long as it's ok that I come up to Maine a day earlier, I don't really care."_

"Of course, honey. That way we still get to spend Thanksgiving together. That's so awesome." She told Rory happily.

"_I know. I'm really happy, too. But are you sure Liz or Luke are not gonna mind me coming up earlier?"_

"No of course not, sweetie. They're really happy to see you."

"_Are you really sure?"_

Lorelai rolled her eyes and held the phone to Luke's ear. "Luke would you please tell Rory that you or Liz would be ok with her coming here a day earlier."

Luke looked at her puzzled. "Hey, Rory. We'd love to have you here on Thanksgiving. Don't worry, there's plenty of room and food for you."

Lorelai put the phone back to her ear. "Believe me now?"

"_Yeah, thanks. I guess then I'll pack my stuff and get on the road. Then I'll be there tonight around nine or ten."_

"That's great, sweetie. I can't wait to see you."

"_Me either, mom. I haven't seen you for such a long time. So I'll see you guys later tonight."_

"Yeah, you will. Drive carefully, there's quite a lot of snow down here."

"_Really? That's awesome, it hasn't snowed here yet. And don't worry, mom, I'm always careful."_

"I know, just wanted to make sure, babe. See you tonight."

"_Yeah, say 'hi' to Luke."_

"I will, bye."

"_Bye."_

Lorelai put her phone on the nightstand and leaned back against Luke's shoulder.

"Why did Emily cancel on Rory?" Luke asked her, pulling her closer to his body.

Lorelai sighed, "she told Rory that they had to go to some charity function that they couldn't get out of, but I'm pretty sure that this is about our fight, and she's afraid that Rory's gonna confront her about that."

"Well, at least she's gonna be able to spend Thanksgiving with us now."

"Yeah, she is. I'm really happy."

"And I'm glad that you're happy." He told her, pulling her down for a kiss.

Lorelai smiled and glanced over his shoulder to the alarm clock on the nightstand. "As much as I hate to say this," Lorelai said looking back down at him, "but I think we should get dressed, I'm sure they're gonna be back soon."

"Yeah you're probably right."

Lorelai leaned over him to retrieve their underwear from the pile on the floor and passed his boxers to Luke, putting her own underwear back on.

"So what time is Rory gonna be here?" Luke asked her while getting dressed.

"Probably around ten or eleven tonight."

Lorelai looked at Luke and caught him frowning. "Is everything ok, Luke? Do you not want her to come?" she asked him a little concerned.

"No, god no. I'm really happy to see her. It's just…" he paused and sat down on the bed.

Lorelai, now also dressed, sat down next to him and gently squeezed his knee, urging him to continue. "It's just what?"

"Jess. The last time he came to Stars Hollow, he wanted to talk to her, but he never did. Well he told her something and then drove off, without waiting for her answer."

"Oh, Rory never told me about that. What did he say to her?"

"He told her he loved her."

"Oh…" Lorelai said surprised and shocked as well. Neither of them said anything for a few moments, until Lorelai cleared her throat and continued, "Well, maybe you should talk to him."

"Yeah, that's what I thought about. I'll talk to him after dinner."

"Ok."

"Maybe, you could talk to Rory sometime this weekend." Luke suggested.

"Yeah, I will, definitely."

Luke nodded and stood up. "Come on, let's go downstairs. I'm sure they'll be back soon. I'll make us some dinner."

"Can I help?" Lorelai asked jumping up excitedly.

"You can watch," Luke told her.

"What you don't trust my cooking skills?" She asked him pretending to be hurt.

"You don't have any." He told her, pulling her to his body.

"Yeah, you're right." Lorelai stepped on her tip toes and pecked his lips. "Come on," she said pulling him with her towards the stairs.

Just as Luke was putting the pasta into the boiling water, Jess, Liz and TJ stepped into the front hall, covered in snow.

Lorelai walked out into the living room, laughing at the sight of them. "Wow, you look like a little snow family."

Jess glared at her. "Really funny, it's freakin' cold out there and it doesn't stop snowing."

"I take you're not a big fan of snow Jess?" Lorelai asked him still grinning.

"No. And who is? It's cold and wet and causes power outages and car accidents." He told her, while taking of his wet boots and coat.

"What? Have you never experienced the magic of snow?"

"Noo! 'Cause there's no magic to it."

"Jess, you better don't argue with her about that," Luke said coming out of the kitchen. "The Gilmore girls and their thing about snow is one of the many things you should better not argue about, cause you're definitely gonna loose this one."

Lorelai put her arms around Luke's midsection and grinned up at him. "Better listen to your uncle, Jess, never argue with a Gilmore, there's no chance you're gonna win."

"Whatever, I'm gonna go upstairs to get out of these wet clothes. Call me when dinner's ready." With that he was out of the room.

"Whatcha, cookin' Luke?" TJ asked him while peering into the pots.

"Pasta with meatball sauce and stay out of the kitchen TJ."

TJ put his hands up in defense. "This is my kitchen you know? O can be in here as much as I want."

"Yeah, but I'm the one making dinner right now, so it's my territory."

"Yeah, yeah." He said and got a beer out of the fridge. "I'm gonna go watch some football."

Luke gave Lorelai a little squeeze and went back into the kitchen by both Liz and Lorelai.

"Thanks for making dinner, bro." Liz told him.

"It's no big deal."

"I miss your food." Liz said and sat down at the table and watched him.

"Well, you should come and visit me more often, and then you would get to eat my food more often."

"Well, maybe I will."

"You should, Liz." Lorelai piped in. "Even if he doesn't like to admit it, I think he misses you."

"You do?" Liz asked him surprised."

"You could come by more than once or twice a year, you know. I wouldn't mind that."

He told her not taking his eyes off the stove.

Lorelai smiled at that and went back upstairs to let them have their little moment as brother and sister.

"I always thought you didn't want me to visit." Liz told him.

"What?" Luke said surprised and turned around to face her. "Why would you think that?"

"Well, you never seemed really happy when I came to see you."

Luke sat down next to Luke. "That's 'cause you always came when you needed money or when you needed me to get you out of trouble again. I don't think you ever came just to see me."

"I did, didn't I?"

Luke nodded silently.

"I sorry, bro." Liz answered him, her eyes tearing up.

"It's ok," Luke said brushing away her tears and pulling her into a tight embrace. "Even if I don't always agree with what you do or who you marry," Liz chuckled at that, "I still love you, you know. You're my little sister, I will always love you. Just come by more often."

"I love you, too, and I promise you to come by more often, just to see you." Liz pulled away slightly and kissed his cheek.

"Good," Luke patted her knee and went back to the stove. "Will you call the others? Dinner will be ready in a minute."

Liz smiled at him and went into the living room to call the rest of the family for dinner.

After dinner Lorelai excused herself to read a little in their bedroom to kill some time until Rory would arrive. Jess, TJ and Liz where watching some TV, while Luke was cleaning up the kitchen.

After he was done in the kitchen he went into the living to the others. "Hey Jess, help me get some more wood for the fireplace, will you?"

"Luke, you don't have to do that, TJ can do it tomorrow."

TJ looked up from the TV for a second. "Let the man do it if he wants to, I don't mind."

"That's something new," Jess mumbled under his breath.

"What did ya say?" TJ raised his voice towards Jess.

"Nothing, Gary. Come on." He said to Luke, got his jacket and went outside. Luke got his jacket as well and followed Jess outside, who was already getting some wood.

"Jess, leave the wood for a sec. I wanna talk to you."

Jess sighed and went to sit next to Luke on the porch swing.

"What have you been up to? I haven't seen you in a long time."

"Didn't do anything special."

"Did you stay with your dad?"

"Yeah, for about a year."

"What are you doing now?" Jess wasn't very talkative and Luke felt like he had to squeeze every answer out of him.

"Moved back to New York, took a few college courses…"

Luke nodded until Jess's words sunk in. "Took a few college courses?" He turned to Jess surprised. "How did you get into college without finishing High School?"

Jess shrugged with his shoulders and put on his gloves that he had taken out of his coat pockets. "I went back to high school in California and got my diploma."

Luke was stunned. After a few moments of digesting the news, he finally got his voice back. "What changed your mind?"

"You." Jess replied barely above a whisper.

"ME?" Luke asked even more surprised. "What did I do?"

"I guess the whole you're not dumb you can do something with your life, don't screw up talk you constantly gave me made me think about my life."

"Wow. That's great news, Jess."

"Yeah, well." Jess said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Soo, what courses are you taking? Do you know what you want to major in? I mean what do you wanna do with your life? And where do you live?"

"Whoa, that's a lot of questions there Luke!" Jess said a little defensive.

"Jess." Luke said annoyed by Jess's tone.

"I got a scholarship. Went to NYU, I live in a dorm room, even though I hate it and I wanna go into journalism."

"That's great Jess. I'm sure you'll be a great journalist one day."

"We'll see."

Luke smiled to himself; he was glad that Jess got back on the right track again. He turned back to Jess.

"But that's actually not all I wanted to talk about with you?"

"All right, I'm listenin'."

"You know that Rory is gonna come tonight, right?" He asked Jess.

"Tonight? I thought she wasn't gonna be here until tomorrow."

"Yeah, well, Emily canceled their dinner, so she's coming tonight already."

"Oh, ok."

"But that's not what I wanted to say."

"Well, what is it? I'm kinda freezing my butt off out here."

Luke sighed. "I guess I just wanted to know, if you would be ok with her being around for the next couple of days. I mean I know you haven't talked to her since…."

"No I haven't." Jess interrupted him.

"Are you planning on talking to her?"

"Yeah, if she wants to."

"Do you think you guys will…"

"I don't know." Jess interrupted him again.

"Oh ok."

"Is that it?" Jess said getting up to get the fire wood.

"Yeah, I guess that's it."

"All right, I'm gonna go inside." He said and walked towards the front door.

"Jess?" Luke stopped him before he went inside.

Jess stopped in the doorway but didn't turn around.

"Just don't hurt her."

"I could never hurt her." He said sincerely and went inside.

Luke sighed and went inside as well.

Luke found Lorelai in their room, reading on the bed.

"Hey," she said when he came in. "How'd it go?"

Luke took his shoes off and lay down next to her on the bed. "You won't believe what Jess told me."

Lorelai put her book on the nightstand and sat up against the headboard. "What kind of trouble did he get himself into now?"

"No trouble at all." Luke told her.

"What then?"

"He went back to High School in California, got his diploma, received a _scholarship_ and is now studying Journalism at New York University."

Lorelai's jaw dropped. "Wow!"

"Yep, that's pretty much what I said when he told me." Luke replied and closed his eyes for a few moments.

Lorelai lay down on her side, propped her head up on hand and placed her other hand on his chest. "So are you happy about that?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"That doesn't sound convincing."

Luke opened his eyes and looked at her. "I just hope that he's gonna stay on this track."

"Did he tell you why he changed his mind about going back to High School?"

"Yeah, apparently I did." He said shaking his head in disbelieve, Lorelai smiled at that.

"What?" he asked her seeing her smile.

"I'm really sorry, but I told you so."

"What?"

"Remember when you came to my house after Jess had left and you thought that you had failed him?"

"Yeah, I think I do."

"And do you remember what I told you about that?"

Luke shook his head 'no'.

"Well, I told you that you didn't fail him, that you did everything to help him. That you didn't do anything wrong."

"Ah."

"And I was right."

"Are you doing a happy dance in your head?" Luke asked her after seeing her expression.

"Maybe," she said grinning at him.

"Crazy lady." Luke said rolling his eyes at her.

"Yeah, but you love my craziness." She told him pecking his lips.

"Maybe," he pulled her back down for a longer and deeper kiss. And just as their kisses became heavier there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Lorelai said, laying back down next to Luke.

The door opened and Rory stepped in, covering her eyes with on hand. "Are you guys decent?"

"RORY!" Lorelai yelled and jumped to pull her daughter into a tight embrace.

"Ugh, mom. Need air."

"Sorry, kid," Lorelai laughed and loosened her embrace a little. "I'm just so happy to see you."

"Still, I'd like to stay alive here."

"Aren't you happy to see me at all?"

"I am very happy to see you; I was just teasing you a little. I kinda missed that." Rory told her mom and hugged her again.

"Thanks a lot." Lorelai said pouting, pretending to be mad.

Rory grinned at her mom and went over to Luke, who had gotten up from the bed and was standing next to the two women. "Hey, Luke." She said putting her arms around his waist for a hug.

"Hey, Rory." Luke greeted her, returning the hug affectionately.

"Awe, look at the two of you." Lorelai said when she watched the people she loved most share a hug.

Luke gave her his 'I'm not really mad you for this, but I pretend to be' look at which Lorelai had to smile even more. She knew that Rory was like a daughter to Luke and she

regarded her more as a father figure than she did with Chris.

"Hey Rory, are you hungry?" Luke asked her. "I left you some extra pasta with meatball sauce."

"Awe, thanks Luke! I'm starving. I haven't eaten since this morning, I was so busy with packing and I didn't really have anything left to eat at my dorm room."

"Yeah, that's what I thought. I'll go heat it up for you."

"Thanks I'll be down in a minute. I'm just gonna freshen up a little bit."

"I'll come with you," Lorelai said to Luke and pulled him towards the stairs.

Rory smiled at them and went to her room to change into some more comfortable clothes. Rory heard the faint sounds of Coldplay coming out of the room next to her. She stepped closer and took a deep breath when she saw Jess reading on his bed through the opening of the door. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door. 'Now or never,' she thought to herself.

"Come in," Jess said but didn't look up from his book.

"Hey, Jess." Rory said softly and stepped into the doorframe.

"Rory," Jess said surprised and put his book down.

"Can I come in?" She asked him and gestured towards his room.

"Oh yeah, sure." He said and got up from his bed. "Come on in."

"Thanks," she stepped inside and closed the door behind her.

"So…" Jess said after a few awkward moments of complete silence.

"So…" Rory replied casting her eyes around the room avoiding his eyes.

_TBC…._

**AN2: **

I know I'm evil to end it with a cliffhanger again. :)

But I'd really like to know your opinion about Jess. I haven't yet decided on how to continue the Rory/Jess storyline, so I thought I'd let people vote about it. So when you review tell me what you'd prefer. (I will take that as a strong suggestion)

- They talk about everything and get back together eventually

- They talk and decide to be friends

- They never talk to each other again if they don't have to

Other suggestions are always welcome.

Well tell me what you think. I hope to get a looooottt of reviews ;)


	22. Author's note

**Author's note:**

I know, I know, I haven't updated in a reeeaaally long time. I'm really really really sorry. I know you probably all thought that I had finally updated my story. But I'm still not done with the chapter. I could post what I have so far, but it's not even half as much as I usually post and it's just not done yet. Andbecause I've been letting you wait for such a long time, I really want it to be a good chapter. I just haven't had time to continue, because I just started college and I have classes from morning until seven or eight in the evening and that doesn't include the workload I have to do when I get back to my dorm.

I'm gonna update as soon as I can, I think I'll have some time to write over this weekend. I will defenitely try.

Last but not least, I wanna say a huge THANK YOU to all of you who have kept reading my story for such a long time now, and I hope I haven't lost some of you by not updating in such a long time. For the last chapter, I especially want to thank: _**Everwoodgirl04; ProFfeSser; Mrs. Scott Patterson; J.Stone; Kylie1403; LLR; gilmoregirlkk; Baby Girl Geller-Green; Phoebe4u; GilmoreJunkieJavaGirls; ultimategilmoregirl; JavaJunkieE006; lauren; LukeNLorelaiequalsLuuuv; Katie; April Dewey; katieanna; GilmoreHorseFreak04; Courtney; Sarah; lukelorelai-en **(don't read it, if you think that **that**part was too detailed; noone else complained about that; Sorry, I don't wanna sound rude)._ **Thank you guys soooo much for reviewing the chapter, that's what makes me continue writing :D And I'm glad you guys like the little ... part, if you know what I mean ;)**

I'm not sure yet, what I'm gonna do about the Rory/Jess situation, but I got an idea from your reviews, you guys will just have to wait and see.

Sorry again that this is just an authors note and not an update. I will try and update as soon as I can. So bear with me folks.

Claudia


	23. Thanksgiving Part I

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything

**_Author's Note:_**

_I know, I know, please don't kill me. I know I'm a horrible person. I never thought that the first semester in college would keep me that busy and I wouldn't be able to update for months. I'm in the middle of exam preparation right now and really really wanted to update._

_Right now this chapter is not proofread yet, but I will post it again as soon as I get the proofread version. I just didn't want to let you guys wait even longer._

_I hope you're still with me. And I hope the waiting has been worth the while._

_On with the story:_

**_ENJOY_**

**_Previously on Family Matters And a New Twist in Life_**

_Rory heard the faint sounds of Coldplay coming out of the room next to her. She stepped closer and took a deep breath when she saw Jess reading on his bed through the opening of the door. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door. 'Now or never,' she thought to herself. _

"_Come in," Jess said but didn't look up from his book._

"_Hey, Jess." Rory said softly and stepped into the doorframe._

"_Rory," Jess said surprised and put his book down._

"_Can I come in?" She asked him and gestured towards his room._

"_Oh yeah, sure." He said and got up from his bed. "Come on in."_

"_Thanks," she stepped inside and closed the door behind her._

"_So…" Jess said after a few awkward moments of complete silence._

"_So…" Rory replied casting her eyes around the room avoiding his eyes._

**Chapter 22**

"Do you, uh, do you want to sit down?" Jess asked her gesturing towards his bed.

"Uh, yeah sure." Rory replied and sat down on the bed while Jess sat down beside her.

After a few more uncomfortable moments of not speaking both of them started at the same time.

"Jess." Rory said, turning her body towards him.

"Rory." Jess said at the same time facing her as well.

"You go first." Rory said.

Jess nodded. "How have you been?"

"Pretty good, college is keeping me really busy. But I really like it. You?"

"I'm alright. I, uh, I'm taking some courses at NYU."

Rory nodded simply until Jess's words really sunk in. "Did you say you're going to NYU?"

"Yep."

"How, I mean…"

"I went back to High School in California and got my diploma. I guess Luke's constantly bugging sunk in at some point."

"Wow, that's great, Jess! I'm really happy for you! Do you like it?"

"Yeah, it's alright."

"What are you majoring in?"

"Journalism." Jess told her in a quiet voice.

Rory looked at him surprised. "Wow, how come?"

"Well you know I can do what I like most. Read a lot of stuff, talk about it and write about it. I guess I wanna get a job at a paper or become a writer or something. I don't really know yet."

"That's really great, Jess. I think that really fits you."

"I guess." Jess nodded and took a deep breath. "Rory, I want to apologize about the way I behaved the last time I came to see you. I shouldn't have asked you to run away with me."

"Jess…"

"No. It was really stupid of me to just burst in and ask to leave everything behind and come with me. I'm really sorry."

"I know. I'm not mad at you. I was at first, but I'm not anymore."

"Really?" Jess said surprised.

"Yeah," Rory nodded.

"So," Jess broke the silence again. "What did you want to say?"

"Oh, uh, I wanted to ask you if we could start all over again. As friends, I mean." Rory quickly added to her statement. "My mom and Luke really seem to be getting serious and because of that we're probably gonna see each other more in the future, and…"

"Rory…" Jess tried to interrupt her babbling.

"It would be really awkward if we didn't speak to each other. I mean, maybe we're even gonna be related someday, and…"

"Rory," Jess said a little louder this time.

"Yeah?" Rory stopped and looked up at him.

"I'd love to be friends with you."

Rory let out deep sigh. "Good, I'm glad."

"Good, me too. Soo your mom and Luke, huh?"

"Yeah." Rory nodded, looking around the room.

"About time."

"What?" Rory looked up surprised.

"Oh, come on. It was totally obvious that they had a thing for each other the whole time. It's about time that they finally admitted it."

Rory had to laugh at that. "Yeah, you're right."

"Luke is really happy, you know?" Jess told her sincerely.

"I know, so is my mom. I've never seen either of them so happy before."

"Rory, dinner's ready." Luke yelled from downstairs.

Rory gestured towards the door. "I should…"

"Yeah, go. You gotta be hungry." Jess told her with a smirk.

"Kinda." Rory admitted. "Are you coming?"

"Nah, I'll stay here and read a little more."

"Ok," Rory nodded and walk outside and downstairs into the dining room.

* * *

"This smells great, Luke." Rory told him when she got into the kitchen. 

"I hope it does, 'cause it's your favorite." He told her putting down the plate in front of her after she had sat down at the table in the kitchen.

Rory thanked him and started eating like she hadn't for days.

"Gee, slow down, Rory, there's plenty enough for you." Luke told her shaking his head.

"Sorry, it's just that I haven't eaten anything since this morning cause I had to finish some stuff for the paper. And when I was done with my work, there was nothing left in the cafeteria."

"Well, just slow down a little or you're gonna feel sick later."

"Hey, someone seems to be very hungry here." Lorelai commented as she walked into the kitchen.

"Geez, could you guys please concentrate on something other than my eating habits."

"Sure," Lorelai grinned and sat down in Luke's lap.

"Don't even think about it," Luke told her when she started to lean into him.

Lorelai pouted. "You guys are no fun," she said and got off of Luke's lap. "I'm gonna go upstairs." She bent down and pecked Luke on the lips. "See ya in a couple of minutes."

"I'm gonna clean up a little before I'll come upstairs." Luke told her.

"Night, babe." Lorelai kissed Rory on her head.

"Night, mom." Rory answered chewing on her burger.

"Very attractive."

"Shush," Rory said and focused back on her burger and fries.

"The amount of love in this house is unbelievable." Lorelai said and walked towards the stairs.

* * *

"So," Luke said, clearing his throat. 

Rory looked up waiting for him to continue.

"Did you talk to Jess, yet?"

"Yeah," Rory nodded.

"Anything specific?" Luke asked carefully, not sure how to approach the topic.

Rory took a sip of her coke. "He told me about everything."

"He did?"

"Yep, he did."

"Good, I mean, not that it's any of my business…"

"It's ok, Luke, I get what you mean." Rory said squeezing his forearm.

"Good. I just …"

"I know thanks."

Rory knew how uncomfortable Luke was with talks like that, and she really appreciated that he still wanted to talk to her about stuff like that.

Luke got up and placed Rory's dishes in the sink. "Why don't you go and get some sleep, you gotta be pretty tired.

"Yeah, I am," she started yawning. "You should go to bed as well, Luke. It's pretty late already. Tell mom to be quiet." She said grinning at him.

Luke blushed slightly, "Uhuh."

* * *

When Luke went upstairs, Lorelai was lying in bed reading with her glasses on. Luke stood in the doorway and watched her for a couple of seconds. 

Lorelai looked up from her book and smiled at him. "Like what you're seeing?"

Luke smiled and replied, "Very". He crawled onto the bed and lay down next to her on his stomach.

"I look old with my glasses."

Luke shook his head. "No, you don't. You look different with them, but in a good way."

"How come?"

"I don't know, you just do. You look cute with them."

"And otherwise I don't?" Lorelai said trying to act offended.

"No, I just meant…", he started, but Lorelai silenced him with a long kiss.

"I know what you meant, hon, I'm just teasing you. It was nice to tell me that I don't look old."

"You don't look old, you look more beautiful with each day." Lorelai leaned forward again and placed a few soft kisses on Luke's lips, while gently placing her hand on his cheek."

"I'll be right back", Luke told her when they separated, and got up to get ready for bed, while Lorelai went back to reading her book.

* * *

After a couple more minutes Luke came out of the bathroom and got under the covers next to Lorelai. Lorelai put her book on the nightstand along with her glasses and cuddled herself against Luke's body, who put his arm around her entwining their fingers with his other hand. 

"We haven't done this in a long time," Lorelai said after a couple of minutes of silence.

"Done what?"

"This," Lorelai said, "just lying in bed together at night, cuddling."

"True."

"Hey, Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"I like being here."

"Me, too."

"I mean, not just here with you right now, but also here in Maine, spending Thanksgiving with you and Rory and your family."

"I know what you mean. I mean as much as I'd like to kill TJ about once a day, I kinda missed spending the holidays with the family. After my mom died, my dad never really wanted to celebrate any holidays, and after he had died, Liz was gone and I didn't really see the point in celebrating by myself."

"But now, you're here with your family."

"And you and Rory."

"And me and Rory."

"And that's all that matters to me."

Lorelai was silent for a couple of minutes. "Do you miss you're parents?" She asked Luke, looking up at him.

Luke looked down at her. "Yeah, sometimes." He said in a quiet voice.

Lorelai sensed that he didn't feel comfortable talking about his parents. "Sorry that I brought this up. I was just curious."

Luke kissed the top of her head and pulled her closer to his body. "No, you don't have to apologize about it. I know that I don't talk about them much, but I want you to know about them."

"I'd like to know more about them."

"I miss them during the holidays, you know. Thanksgiving and Christmas always were my mom's favorite holidays. She would usually start decorating the house a couple of days before Thanksgiving, and she spent hours in the kitchen cooking. I loved watching her. She always had a smile on her face and she was always singing to herself. I mean, not that she wasn't a happy person throughout the rest of the year, but that's when she was really happy. The food always was amazing, and the house had this wonderful smell to it. I loved Thanksgiving and Christmas when I was a kid."

"So that's why you hate holidays." Lorelai said gently stroking his chest.

"I don't hate holidays, it's just not the same anymore, you know. I guess I kinda took on my dad's attitude after my mom died. He pretty ignored all the holidays when she wasn't with us anymore. It just hurt him too much, and it hurt me to see him like that. When my dad died, Liz had already moved out with Jess, and I never saw the point in celebrating the holidays without anyone else to celebrate with." Luke told her with glazy eyes.

"I'm so sorry, babe." She said leaning up to kiss him softly.

"No, don't be sorry. There's nothing to be sorry about anymore. I already told you that this is pretty much all I could wish for right now. I have a beautiful girlfriend, who has a beautiful daughter, and I have my family to celebrate the holidays with. I couldn't wish for anything else." Luke leaned down again and kissed her softly, pulling her even closer to him, so she was almost lying on top of him.

"I love you." Lorelai told him when they parted.

"I love you." He replied gently caressing her back with his fingertips.

"I want this to be a happy time for you again. We should start our own tradition."

"And what would that be?" Luke asked her.

Lorelai furrowed her brows and thought for a couple of seconds. "Mhmm, I don't know yet. I can't think straight at such a late hour, but I'll think of something tomorrow, I promise."

"Alright, I guess that would be kinda nice."

"Really?" Lorelai asked beaming.

"Yeah, really, but we should really get to sleep now. It's pretty late already, and I have a lot of cooking to do tomorrow."

"I could help you," she grinned up at him.

"We'll see about that."

"Ok," Lorelai replied and kissed him once more. "Good night, honey."

"Good night, Lore."

Lorelai turned around in his arms and snuggled against his chest with her back. Luke pulled her close to his body and entwined her fingers with after covering them with the sheets.

* * *

The next morning Lorelai woke up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and pancakes. She looked at the alarm clock and groaned. It said "9:28", which was pretty early regarding the fact that they didn't go to bed until late at night. She put on her bathrobe and crawled out of bed. Everything around her was pretty quiet in the hallway since the others were probably still sleeping. She walked downstairs into the kitchen and, where Luke was standing in front of the stove. He was making pancakes and scrambled eggs with bacon. Lorelai walked up behind him and snaked her arms around his waist from behind. Luke jumped slightly, because he hadn't heard her coming in, and turned around to face her. 

"Jeez, Lorelai, you scared me half to death."

"Well, who else do you think is gonna greet you like that in the morning?"

Luke didn't turn in order not to grin at her like an idiot. "Well, now that you ask…"

Lorelai took a step back and looked at him suspiciously.

Luke still hadn't turned around to her, and Lorelai didn't think his reaction to be funny at all.

"What did you just say? Is there something you wanna tell me, Luke?"

Luke finally turned around to her and already regretted his little joke. "No of course not, honey."

"Don't honey me. Are you hiding something from me Luke?" she asked him again, her voice become slightly louder.

"What? No of course not, Lorelai. I was just kidding." He said taking a step towards her, but Lorelai took a step back.

"Oh really? I don't think this is funny, Luke. That's nothing to joke about." She said her voice only above a whisper now. She looked at him with a sad expression and turned towards the window.

Luke walked up behind her and touched her shoulder. "Lorelai, please, you know I'm not serious."

Lorelai flinched under his touch and kept staring out the window. "Well, I don't like it when you joke about something like that." She turned around to him and looked into his eyes.

Luke saw tears glistening in her eyes. "Lorelai what's going on? Why are you so upset about this?" He asked taking a step towards her. "Come here. I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to upset you. I was kidding, you know I would never hurt you on purpose." He pulled her into his arms, and this time she didn't pull away.

"I know. I'm sorry; I don't know why I freaked out like this. I guess I'm just in PMS mood." A single tear rolled down her cheek and Luke gently brushed it away with his thumb.

"I shouldn't have freaked out like this. It's just…"

"What?" Luke asked her, tilting her chin up so he could look into her eyes.

"Nothing. I don't even wanna think about what I would do if you found someone else. I don't…"

"Lorelai stop. Don't continue this thought. There's absolutely no reason for you to think anything like that. I could never hurt you. I could never leave you, do you hear me?" He asked her looking straight into her eyes.

Lorelai nodded while another tear made it's way down her cheek, which Luke brushed away again.

"I'm really sorry I started this. I'm not as good with jokes as you are."

"You're definitely not." Lorelai said smiling at him through her tears.

"Do you think I would have waited for you for almost ten years to finally see me if I wasn't dead serious about us. I love you more than anything, Lorelai."

Lorelai smiled at him. "No I guess not. I love you too." She told him and wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him down for a tender kiss. He kissed her back with as much love as he could put into a single kiss, hoping that it would underline his feelings for her.

After a couple of soft kisses, Luke rested his forehead against her and whispered to her, "we good?"

"Yes, we're good. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. If someone has to be sorry here, it's definitely me." Luke leaned back down again and captured her lips with his. They kept kissing for a while and where just about to deepen their kisses even further, when they heard someone clearing their throat in the kitchen entryway.

"Well, well, if it isn't our two lovebirds."

"Shut up, TJ." Luke grunted at him not taking his eyes away from Lorelai.

Lorelai giggled slightly to which Luke only rolled his eyes.

"Sorry, man. I mean I just came down here because I smelled the food, you know? I couldn't by any chance know that the two of you were getting at it in here. Which is my kitchen by the way, so technically, I have the right to come here any time I want."

"Leave them alone TJ." Liz said walking into the kitchen as well. "Sorry guys. Hey bro', why don't you just hand us two plates and we will have our breakfast out in the dining room.

"Gladly." Luke said to his sister. He put a little bit of everything on two plates and handed them to Liz, who dragged TJ into the dining room.

As soon as they had left the kitchen Luke turned towards Lorelai again. "Do you want some coffee."

"You know I'm not able to function properly with out my daily fix of your coffee."

"It's gonna kill you someday, that's the only thing it's gonna do to you."

"I know, I know, but at least I'll die happy."

"You could also do that without this liquid death." Luke said handing her a cup of coffee.

"Yeah, but what's the fun in that." She said grinning at him. "Hey how about some pancakes and bacon to go with my liquid death?" she asked him still grinning.

Luke just sighed and put some pancakes and bacon on two plates and put them down on the kitchen table, where they sat down and enjoyed their breakfast together, before Luke would start preparing everything for the Thanksgiving dinner.

About an hour later, Rory and Jess had come down and eaten some breakfast as well. Luke started to get out the things he would need for making dinner.

Lorelai walked up beside him, "Can I help you?"

Luke looked at her surprised. "You want to help me cook dinner for Thanksgiving?"

"Well I don't wanna just sit around and do nothing."

"Why don't you go out for a walk in the snow? You were so happy that we had so much snow here."

"I know, and I still am, but it's really cold out there."

"You're crazy."

"I know, so you don't want me helping me?"

"It's not that I don't want you to help me, you just never cook, and this is supposed to be eatable in the end."

"Alright, alright, I get it. I'm just gonna sit here and watch you do your thing."

Luke walked over to where she was sitting and pecked her gently on the lips. "Good, I actually like it when you're watching me cooking. And don't say 'dirty', I just like having you around me."

"I know, sweetie. Can I at least have another cup of coffee?" She asked with a smirk.

Luke rolled his eyes at her, but handed her a full cup without saying anything.

At that moment Liz walked in and joined Lorelai at the kitchen table.

"He doesn't want you to help him?" Liz asked Lorelai with a grin on her face.

"No." Lorelai pretended to pout.

"Yeah, well, don't worry it. I was never allowed to help on Thanksgiving, or any other meal for that matter. Holiday meals have always been his specialty."

"I know, I just don't want to sit around and do nothing." Lorelai told her taking another sip of her coffee."

"Well why don't we let him cook, and we girls go into the living room and chat a little."

"Yeah, that's a good idea. Leave the men to the kitchen." Lorelai walked over to Luke and kissed him on the cheek. "Will you be ok in here all by yourself, my big strong man?"

"Lorelai…" Luke said in a warning tone. "Actually, could you send Jess in here? He can help me a little. That way he won't do anything stupid."

"I'll send him in." Liz told him.

"Thanks, sis."

* * *

Lorelai and Liz walked into the living room, each holding a cup of coffee, and sat down on the couch in front of the fire place. 

"Jess, Luke wants you to help him in the kitchen." Liz told her son.

"Great." Jess said under his breath, put the book away he was reading, and walked into the kitchen to help his uncle.

"You know I think they kinda enjoy spending time together, even if neither of them wants to admit it." Liz said watching Jess walk away.

"I think you're right. I think Luke missed having Jess around after he had left. He doesn't really like to admit it, but I think he was glad that he didn't have to be all by himself in that apartment upstairs."

"Yeah, Jess enjoyed being with his uncle, too, although he would never admit it. They have a lot in common when it comes to showing feelings."

"I think they invented monosyllable man." Lorelai said laughing slightly and Liz joined her.

"Yeah, you're right. I really wish Jess would talk more to me."

"He will come around to it. Don't worry, just give it some time."

"I know," Liz sighed. "I think it was good that he spend some time with Luke in Stars Hollow. Luke's a really good guy. I don't know what I would have done without my brother at that time."

"You know he would do anything for his little sister. Even though he doesn't like to admit it, he would do anything for his family." Lorelai told her glancing towards the kitchen where Luke and Jess were now preparing dinner together.

"Well I know someone else he would do anything for…" Liz replied grinning.

"What do you mean?" Lorelai asked her.

"Are you kidding, Lorelai? I've never seen me brother like that. He's a totally different man ever since he had the guts to ask you out."

"You think?" Lorelai asked her, blushing a little.

"I know for sure. I've never seen him that happy before. He really loves you more than anyone else in the world. It seems to be going really well between the two of you, doesn't it?"

**TBC...**

_**AN2:** So what do you think? I know that cliffhanger is a little mean, but I'm already writing on the next chapter which will not take a couple of months, but probably two or three weeks, depending on how studying works out._

_So press that little button and tell me what you think, I know I am on the alert list of many many people, and I'd be more than happy to get many many reviews ;)_


	24. Thanksgiving Part II

**A/N:** I am so so so so sorry for not updating that long again. I know I'm a horrible person. Please forgive me. My first semester was finally over and then I got sick for over a week and then I already had to start my second semester. Which is much easier and I think I have a lot more time to write. Also this wasn't one of the easiest chapters to write, because of all the different characters. And on top of that I just found out that one of our relatives died suddenly, which threw me back for a couple of days.

Anyway I really hope you guys will continue reading my story and tell me what you think. Also I have a little question for you guys. Does anyone have some ideas fornicknames/pet names that Luke could call Lorelai. I know I used Lore which is a bad reminder of someone else we don't want to mention hear, but I also didn't want to sound too mushy. So if you have an idea just leave it in the review. ;) Last but not least, a huge thank you to all of you who have reviewed my last chapter. You guys are awesome.

So now on with the story.

ENJOY and tell me what you think :)

* * *

Previously on Family Matters And A New Twist In Life:

"_You know he would do anything for his little sister. Even though he doesn't like to admit it, he would do anything for his family." Lorelai told her glancing towards the kitchen where Luke and Jess were now preparing dinner together._

"_Well I know someone else he would do anything for…" Liz replied grinning._

"_What do you mean?" Lorelai asked her._

"_Are you kidding, Lorelai? I've never seen me brother like that. He's a totally different man ever since he had the guts to ask you out."_

"_You think?" Lorelai asked her, blushing a little._

"_I know for sure. I've never seen him that happy before. He really loves you more than anyone else in the world. It seems to be going really well between the two of you, doesn't it?"_

**Chapter 23 - Thanksgiving part II**

"I think it's going very well. I'm really glad that he finally found the guts to ask me out." Lorelai paused for a moment and smiled. "I've never felt like this before, not even with Christopher. I mean Luke's been more like a father to her than Christopher has ever been."

"Rory is like a daughter to Luke, he's so proud of her. His eyes are glowing when he talks about her. Just like when he's talking about you." Liz said and patted Lorelai's knee who slightly blushed.

"I'm so grateful for everything he's done for the two of us. He really helped us out in the beginning and he continues to do so. I don't know what I would do without him."

"Well I think that goes both ways. I thought he was nuts when he got married to Nicole."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Uh, don't remind me of that. I thought I had lost him for good when he told me."

"He's with you now, and that's all the matters."

"Yeah, you're right." Lorelai agreed and smiled at Liz. "God it's so beautiful here." She said looking out the window at the snow covered world around them.

"I know, isn't it great? I love it here. I'm so glad we found this place."

"It really is beautiful, Liz."

"Well you and Luke should visit us more often. I really miss having my big brother around and you, too."

"Aww, maybe we will. We should get out of Stars Hollow more often. I mean not that I don't love it…"

"I know what you mean," Liz interrupted her. "I couldn't stand living there as a kid. It's such a small town."

"Yeah, it is, but that's also one reason why I love it so much. It's like a big family, which was really great when I Rory and I moved there. They welcomed us with open arms and made us feel like a part of the community."

"Yeah, I could imagine it made things a little easier."

"It really did."

Suddenly they heard a big groan coming from the kitchen. "Liz can you please get your annoying husband out of the kitchen?" Luke yelled from the kitchen.

"Oh boy," Liz said and Lorelai chuckled. "Come on TJ, why don't we pick out some wine for later?"

Liz pulled TJ away from the kitchen and went into the basement to get some wine.

"But I just wanted to help him." TJ wined.

"I know, hon, but you know that Luke doesn't like others helping him." she told him on the stairs.

Lorelai got up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. "Whatcha cookin' good lookin'?"

Luke rolled his eyes at her. "You know I don't like when you say that." He told her and went back to the stove.

"I know," she said walking up beside him. She slung her arms around his waist and locked her hands at his waist.

Luke put his arm around her and kissed her on the forehead. "What were you guys talking about?"

"You." she said and grinned up at him.

"Me?" Luke asked her surprised.

"Yeah, you and what a wonderful man you are."

"Oh, that." Luke said and chuckled when Lorelai squeezed his side.

"I'm just going to ignore that. When can we eat? I'm starving."

"Just a couple more minutes. Why don't you go call the kids?"

"The kids? Don't let them hear that." She said giggling.

"You know what I mean." Luke said.

"Yeah, I do. Can I get a kiss before I call them?"

"Always," Luke replied and put both arms around her, pulling her closer to his body in the process.

Lorelai stood on her tiptoes and put her arms behind his neck, gently playing with the curls that stuck out under his baseball cap.

Their lips met in a soft and gently kiss. Luke pulled her even more into his body and deepened the kiss. Lorelai quickly got the message and soon their tongues met in a playful banter. After a few more seconds they pulled apart a little breathless.

"That was…"

"Nice," Lorelai continued his sentence. "I think I'm gonna go call the kids before things get a little out of hand here. She let go of him and turned to walk out of the kitchen, but Luke pulled her back into his arms for another kiss.

"Don't forget that thought," she told him with a grin when they broke apart again.

"Believe me I won't." Luke replied and let go of her.

Lorelai smiled and walked upstairs to get Rory and Jess who were both reading in their rooms.

* * *

About an hour later, they were all sitting around the dining room table, well fed and chatting lightly. Jess and Rory were discussing a novel they had recently read; Liz and Lorelai was telling Lorelai about her new jewelry designs and that she had to see them before they went back to Stars Hollow. TJ was talking Luke's ear off about something about their booth at the fair and that he wanted to remodel it. Luke however wasn't really listening to what TJ was saying, because he was too occupied with watching the persons sitting around the table. This was exactly what he had wished for, for many years, his family sitting around a big table enjoying a nice dinner. He was happy that all of them had finally found back together and he was also a little sad that his parents couldn't be part of this moment. His father in particular had always wished for them to be reunited again. And now it had finally become true. Liz had come back, got married to a guy she really seemed to love and would spend more than a couple of months married to. Jess had finished High School and finally seemed to be on the right track and last but not least he himself finally had gotten the woman of his dreams. They weren't married but he was hoping that this would change in the future. 

A little later Liz had excused herself and had dragged TJ into the kitchen to clean up and Rory and Jess had gone upstairs to listen to a CD Jess had wanted to show to Rory. This left Luke and Lorelai alone at the dining room table.

Lorelai walked over to Luke and sat down next to him, slinging her arms around his left arms. Luke smiled down at her softly kissed her forehead.

"What were you thinking about?"

"What was I thinking about when?" Luke asked her confused, not knowing what she was referring to.

"After dinner, when TJ was talking to you. You seemed like you were in a different galaxy with your thoughts. It didn't seem like you were really listening to TJ."

"Oh, that. No I wasn't listening to TJ. But it's kinda hard not to drift away from his rambling."

"Yeah, you're right." Lorelai smiled at him. "So, what were you thinking about?" She asked him again.

"Nothing in particular, I was just taking in the scene around me. I think tonight was what my dad had always wished for; his family together at a table enjoying a nice Thanks-giving Dinner. I'm glad that Liz finally found a guy she might be spending the rest of her life with, even though it still gives me the shivers. Jess has finally found out what he wants to do with his life. And I'm glad that I can share all of this with you."

Lorelai smiled at him and pulled him down for a soft kiss. "You big old softy," she told him, caressing his cheek.

"Yeah, well, just don't tell anyone. I have to keep my image." He said smiling back at her.

"My lips are sealed." Lorelai said smiling up at him. She loved this side of Luke that nobody else in Stars Hollow got to see except for her. She leaned her head against his shoulder and stifled a yawn, which didn't go unnoticed by Luke.

"Hey why don't we head upstairs, it's getting kinda late."

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea, I'm pretty tired." She said yawning.

They had been up all day and it was almost eleven o'clock.

Luke and Lorelai got up and brought the rest of their dishes into the kitchen.

"We're gonna head upstairs, now. Someone's getting pretty tired here", Luke said gesturing towards Lorelai who was leaning into him, barely able to keep her eyes open.

"I can see," Liz said smiling at Lorelai. "Hey bro', before you go to bed can I talk to you for a second?" Liz asked her brother.

"Sure. Can you make it upstairs without me?" He asked Lorelai.

"Yeah," Lorelai nodded.

"I'll be up in a minute." He told her and gently kissed her forehead.

"Night." She said to Liz and TJ and dragged her tired body upstairs into their bedroom to get her toothbrush and then into the bathroom to get ready for bed.­

* * *

Liz pulled Luke into the study and closed the door behind them.

"Is something wrong, Liz? What's this all about?" Luke wanted to know of his sister a little confused.

Liz shook her head. "No, nothing's wrong. I just wanted to talk to you alone for a second. We didn't really have a chance to do that yet, and since you guys are already leaving tomorrow, I thought we could talk a little now. Come on sit down," she said gesturing towards two big armchairs in front of the fireplace that filled the room with a cozy warmth.

They said down in front of the fireplace.

"Did you want to talk about anything in particular?" Luke asked his sister.

"No, I just wanted to see how you were doing. You seem so different than the last time I saw you."

"What do you mean?" Luke looked at her confused.

"I don't know. You just seem so happy. The last time I saw you this happy was when mom and dad were still alive."

"I have been happy since then."

"But not like this. Not before you and Lorelai got together. Not even with Rachel."

"I know, it's so weird. I've never felt like this before. Not with Rachel, not with anyone. Lorelai is so completely different than any other woman I've met before in my life."

Liz had to smile at his confession. "Aww, you really love her don't you?" She said grinning at her brother.

Luke looked up and told his sister seriously "Yeah, I really do. I don't know what I would do without her, you know. She's turned my life upside down, but truth is I can't imagine it any other way."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. It's the same with TJ. Once you've found the right person, you can't imagine your life without them anymore."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Luke said smiling at his sister.

Liz got up and walked to the big wooden desk in the study and opened a drawer. "You know, there actually was a reason, for why I wanted to talk to you alone." She pulled out a little velvet box along with an envelope, walked back to Luke and handed it to him.

Luke looked at her surprised and a little confused. "What is this, Liz?"

Liz handed him the velvet box. "Open it."

Luke looked at his sister a little perplexed and opened the small box. He drew in a deep breath as soon as he saw what was in it. "That's mom's engagement ring. How did you get this? I thought it got lost."

Liz shook her head and sat down in front of him on the armrest of the armchair. "It didn't get lost; I had it the whole time. Mom gave it to dad before she died, and he gave it to me to hand it to you. Dad wanted this to be a surprise for you, that's why he gave to me and told me that he would haunt me if I would loose it."

Both of them had to laugh at this.

"Mom wanted you to have this, when you had found the right woman to marry, and I think you finally did." Liz smiled at him with tears glistening in her eyes.

"I don't know what to say, Liz. Are you sure that you want me to have it? I mean don't you want to have it?" He asked her still in stunned, but Liz shook her head.

"No, mom wanted you to have this some day. And I want you to have it. Lorelai is the absolutely right person to receive this ring, in my opinion. I mean if you want her to have it. I'm sure she'll appreciate it." Liz told her brother sincerely.

"Wow, I… I don't know what to say Liz." Luke said fighting hard to keep tears from brimming his eyes.

"You don't have to say anything, bro. Just make her happy."

"I will, believe me I will. Thank you so much, Liz." He stood and pulled his little sister into a tight hug. "Thanks," he whispered into her ear again.

"You're welcome." Liz pulled back and wiped away a single tear that had slipped down her cheek. She picked up the envelope she had pulled out with the ring and handed it to Luke.

"Here, mom wanted me to give this to you along with the ring. I don't know what it says, she just told me to give it to you when I gave you the ring."

"Thanks." Luke said even more surprised. It was almost a little too much for him to take in at the moment. He had never expected something like this.

Liz kissed him on the top of his head and left him alone to digest all this.

Luke just sat there in front of the fireplace for another good ten minutes, just staring at the ring and the still sealed enveloped. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know what was in that letter right now, or rather if he could deal with what was in that letter right now. He had blocked out pretty much everything from his brain that included his parents, especially his mother. He had never talked about her with anyone else. After a few more minutes he decided not to open the letter right now, but wait until a later time. He wasn't ready to deal with this yet. He put the letter and the box with his mother's ring in his pocket and went upstairs to join Lorelai.

On his way to their bedroom he passed Rory's room where he heard Rory and Jess still talking. He was glad that they were on speaking terms again and that they seemed to have gotten over their problems of the past. He continued walking to their bedroom.

* * *

Rory and Jess were both sitting on the bed in Rory's room. 

"Soo… this was a nice Thanksgiving." Jess said.

"Yeah it really was." Rory agreed. "Hey when do your classes start again?"

"Monday." Jess said with a sigh.

"Yeah, mine too."

"Hey you should come visit me in New York some time. I could show you around, again." He said with a smile.

Rory had to smile too, remembering her little trip to New York a couple of years ago. "That would be nice."

"Rory…"

"Jess…" they both said at the same time and laughed.

"You go first." Rory told him.

"I'm glad that we got to talk. I'm really sorry about…"

"I know," Rory told him and gently touched his arm. "What do you say we just forget about all this and be friends again?"

"Yeah, that would be nice." Jess told her. "And the offer still stands to show you around the city again."

"I know, and I will take you up on that." Rory replied with a smile.

"Well, I guess I'm gonna head over to my room now, it's getting kinda late." He said gesturing towards the alarm clock on the nightstand.

Rory looked at the alarm in surprise; she couldn't believe that it was past midnight already. "Huh, yeah, you're right."

They both stood up and Rory followed Jess to the door. Before opening the door Jess turned around again and pulled Rory into an embrace, which she gladly returned. She really was glad that they had finally had a chance to talk about everything. After a couple of seconds they both pulled away a little and glanced into each other eyes. Before either of them realized what was happening they were both leaning into each other. Their lips met in a slow and sensual kiss. It was a kiss full of feelings, but both of them knew that it was rather a goodbye kiss than a renewal of their old relationship. After a few more seconds they pulled away and Rory looked down at their entwined hands.

"Jess…" Rory said almost in a whisper.

"I know… goodnight Rory." he said and gave her a small peck on the cheek.

"Goodnight." She said to the now closed door, a single tear rolling down her cheek, which she quickly brushed away and went to get ready for bed.

* * *

Luke walked into their bedroom and had to smile at the sight in front of him. Lorelai was lying in bed with her reading glasses still on and a book in her hand sleeping soundly. He quickly went into bathroom to brush his teeth and change into his pj's. Then he walked over to Lorelai's side and gently pulled the book out of her, placing the bookmark on the page where her hand had been and put it on the nightstand. Then he took her reading glasses of and put them on the nightstand on top of the book. After he had switched her light off, he climbed into his side of the bed and turned his light off as well. As soon as he was settled under the covers, Lorelai moved over to him and rested her head on his chest. 

"Hey, you've been gone for quite a while. Is everything ok?" She asked him sleepily.

Luke put his arm around her shoulder and gently brushed his fingers over her arm. "Yeah, everything's fine. She just wanted to catch up a little, because we haven't had a chance to do that yet, since we got here."

"Oh, ok." Lorelai said stifling a yawn.

"Go back to sleep." he said and kissed her forehead, but Lorelai had already fallen back asleep.

He pulled the covers over them and pulled Lorelai closer to him, who immediately drew her arm across his chest and snuggled deeper into his shoulder, in her sleep. Luke was lying awake for another half an hour, thinking about the conversation he had had with his sister that evening, until he too fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

A/N2: _Aaaaannnnddd... that was another chapter. I can tell you it's not easy to write all those characters. I hope you guys liked it. If you did press that little button on the left and REVIEW PLEASE. There are so many people who have me on their alerts list and I don't get even half as many reviews. Which makes me really sad and wonder if people still like my story :(( So if you do like it let me now, this might even help me update a little faster ;)_


	25. Snowfalls

**AN: PLEASE DON'T KILL ME. I know it's been forever AGAIN. I'm a horrible person. I never thought that college would keep me THIS busy. I'm constantly swamped with work, and I hardly find the time to write. On top of that I have a hard time deciding how I want to continue the story. I don't want it to get boring and with every chapter it gets more and more difficult to write. So if you guys have any ideas tell me in your reviews! I'd be happy to get an input from you guys, since you are the ones I am writing this for;) On this note I would really like to thank all of you who are reading and reviewing this. I know that there are a lot of people who are reading this but only a few of these actually review, which sometimes makes me wonder if people still like my story. About 50 people have me on their story alert but only about 15 review each chapter. so PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW PEOPLE. I'd be happy if half of those 50 would review. The more reviews I get the harder I will try to update sooner. I do have some parts of the next chapter all I have to do is write it down. **

**Ok enough talking and on with the story**

**One more thing, this chapter has not yet been proofread and since it's almost one o'clock in the morning I have not reread the second part of this chapter. I'm really sorry if there should be any major errors in here**

**btw this chapter contains one sexual scene but nothing major just some making out ;) **

**ENJOY and PLEASE REVIEW  
**_  
_

_Previously: _

_Luke walked into their bedroom and had to smile at the sight in front of him. Lorelai was lying in bed with her reading glasses still on and a book in her hand sleeping soundly. He quickly went into bathroom to brush his teeth and change into his pj's. Then he walked over to Lorelai's side and gently pulled the book out of her, placing the bookmark on the page where her hand had been and put it on the nightstand. Then he took her reading glasses of and put them on the nightstand on top of the book. After he had switched her light off, he climbed into his side of the bed and turned his light off as well. As soon as he was settled under the covers, Lorelai moved over to him and rested her head on his chest. _

"Hey, you've been gone for quite a while. Is everything ok?" She asked him sleepily.

Luke put his arm around her shoulder and gently brushed his fingers over her arm. "Yeah, everything's fine. She just wanted to catch up a little, because we haven't had a chance to do that yet, since we got here."

"Oh, ok." Lorelai said stifling a yawn.

"Go back to sleep." he said and kissed her forehead, but Lorelai had already fallen back asleep.

Luke pulled the covers over them and pulled Lorelai closer to him, who immediately drew her arm across his chest and snuggled deeper into his shoulder, in her sleep. Luke was lying awake for another half an hour, thinking about the conversation he had had with his sister that evening, until he too fell into a deep sleep.

Chapter 24 - Snowfalls

The next morning Lorelai woke up a little before eight. She turned around to face Luke and saw him staring at ceiling. She propped her head up on her arm and gently put her hand on his chest.

Luke turned his head towards her, "Hey."

"Hey there, how long have you been up?" she asked drawing small circles on his chest.

"A while," he told her.

Lorelai scooted closer to Luke. "Hey, are you alright?"

Luke smiled down at her, "Yeah, I was just thinking."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Lorelai asked him gently.

Luke sighed, "Not right now."

Lorelai looked down on her hand on his chest. "Ok," she said in a small voice. She still had the feeling that Luke didn't want to open up to her, even though they've been in a relationship for quite a while and friends even longer.

Luke brought his hand to her face and gently turned her face back towards him, so he could look into her eyes. "Tonight, ok? I promise we'll talk about it tonight. I just need a little more time. It's nothing about you, or us, you have to trust me on that." Luke told her with a pleading look.

Lorelai gently pulled him towards her and kissed him softly. "I do, I trust you," she said to him sincerely.

"Ok, good."

Luke pulled her closer to his body and kissed the top of her head. Lorelai laid her head on his shoulder and draped her arm over his chest.

"This is nice," she said after a while.

"Yeah, it is," Luke agreed and gently caressed her arm.

"We haven't done this enough lately." Lorelai sighed.

"Yeah, I know. We've been pretty occupied lately.

"Don't blame yourself for that. I was the one abandoning you over the last weeks, and believe me I don't feel good about this fact."

Luke kissed the top of her head. "No, don't worry about it. I know how hard it is to get a business up and running. I've been in that situation myself. This was important and I totally understand that.

Lorelai smiled up at him. "I don't deserve you; you're too good for me."

"Yeah you do." He told her and kissed her reassuringly. "Just don't let it happen too often." He added with a smile.

"I promise you, I won't."

"Good."

"I've really missed you over the last couple of weeks."

"I missed you, too." Luke replied and leaned down to kiss her again.

"Are you going to the diner later?" Lorelai wanted to know when they pulled apart.

"Yeah, for a while, but I have to run some errands in the afternoon."

"Ok."

"How about you, are you going to the Inn?"

Lorelai sighed. "Yeah, but just for a couple of hours, so I can check up on everything and finish some bills that need to go out on Monday. Then I will come back here and relax a little, 'cause I'm officially off until Wednesday." Lorelai told him with a smile.

"Really?" Luke asked her in surprise.

"Yep. I figured that I kinda deserve this after all those extra hours that I have spent in the Inn over the last two months."

"You do deserve this. I'm glad you're taking some time for yourself."

"Me, too."

A little while later the two of them got ready for work. Lorelai was done first and was sitting in the kitchen drinking some coffee that Luke had made for her while she had been in the shower. Luke came downstairs and saw her reading the newspaper. He sat down opposite of her at the table taking a sip of the orange juice that Lorelai had poured for him.

"So do you want to have dinner with me tonight?" Luke asked her.

"What are you making?"

"Who said I was cooking?" Luke asked her with a smirk.

"Well, since I wouldn't even eat what I cook and you don't like to go out too often, I assumed that you were gonna make dinner."

"Good point." Luke admitted.

"I know," she told him with a broad smile. "I'm a genius."

"OK. I'll whip something up. How about you meet me above the diner at six?"

Lorelai looked at her watch, "yeah, sounds good. That gives me about five and a half hours to get things straight at the Inn."

"Good. So I'll meet you there tonight." He got up and put on his coat and scarf that were hanging over one of the chairs. He went over to her and bent down to give her a quick kiss.

"Bye."

"Bye, babe." Lorelai pulled him down for another kiss.

Luke walked out into the hallway looking for his hat. "Lorelai, have you seen my hat?"

Lorelai looked around the kitchen and spotted his hat on the counter behind her.

"Yeah, it's here." She told him and brought it to him into the hallway. She turned it around and put it backwards in his head, putting her arms around his neck in the process.

Luke grinned down at her and quickly put his arms around her waist, pressing her into his body in the process. Lorelai grinned back at him and pulled him down for a more than small kiss. Luke pulled her even closer and eagerly returned the kiss. Lorelai parted her lips and teased his lips with the tip of her tongue. It didn't take long for Luke to part his lips as well and to deepen the kiss, while moving them backwards, so that Lorelai was soon pressed up against the hallway closet. Luke's hat had fallen off in the process and his hands started to roam her body eliciting a low moan from her when stroking the side of her breasts.

"This way we'll never get to work," Lorelai said against his lips when they had to break for air.

"You're the one who started it," Luke told her trying to catch his breath.

"True, but you didn't stop me either."

"Who in their right mind would stop their beautiful girlfriend from a spontaneous make out session?"

Lorelai kissed him softly. "Thanks for the beautiful."

"You're welcome. I know I don't tell you stuff like that often enough." He told her and pulled her into his arms.

"No you do. And I'd rather have you tell me occasionally instead of telling me everyday out of habit like saying "bless you" when someone sneezes."

"That was a weird example."

"Yeah, well you know what I mean."

"Yeah I do." He told her and kissed the top of her head. "I'm gonna head to the diner now before we carry this too far."

"I wouldn't mind that," Lorelai grinned at him mischievously.

"I know, but we don't have time for this right now."

"Yeah, I know." Lorelai sighed and put her arms around his waist hugging him. "I had a great time in Maine." She told him sincerely. "Thanks for taking me with you."

"I'm glad you had a good time. You made it a lot easier to be around TJ."

"Oh come on, he's not that bad."

"Sure, and so isn't you're family."

"OK. Discussion dropped." Lorelai told him wanting to change the subject.

Luke smiled at her and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. "I'll see you tonight."

He put his hat back on and walked to the front door.

"Bye, babe." Lorelai said to him and closed the door behind him.

* * *

THE DINER 

Luke walked into the diner with his bags from the weekend.

"Hey boss," Lane greeted him with a smile.

"Hey Lane, how was the weekend?"

"Everything went well. We had two Thanksgiving shifts and a full diner yesterday. Nothing major."

"Good. Thanks for taking care of everything. I know Ceasar thinks he's in charge but I feel much better when you're here."

"Thanks boss." Lane said surprised at the unexpected praise. "I can use the extra money."

"Good, do me a favor and tell Ceasar that I'm back, in case he needs anything. I need t run some errands but I'll be back in a couple of hours. Lorelai is coming at six and we'll have dinner upstairs. So… you know…"

"You got it boss," Lane told him, knowing what he meant.

"Don't call me that, I feel old when you do."

"Ok, bo… Luke." Lane smiled at him. "I gotta get back to work."

"Yeah sure, I'm just gonna bring this stuff upstairs and then I'll be heading out again."

"OK." Lane told him and went back to work.

Luke brought his stuff upstairs and then headed out again.

* * *

DRAGONFLY INN 

Lorelai walked into the kitchen of the Dragonfly Inn through the backdoor.

"Hey, Sook." She greeted her best friend who was standing at the middle island chopping vegetables.

"Lorelai." Sookie said excited dropping her work and hugging her best friend. "How was your weekend, honey?" Sookie asked and turned around to pour her best friend a cup of coffee.

Lorelai took the cup from Sookie. "It was great; we had a good time in Maine. A lot of snow, good food…"

"Good sex?" Sookie asked her with a grin.

"Sookie." Lorelai shushed her. "That's none of your business." Lorelai said slapping her friend's arm lightly.

"So it was good." Sookie said grinning at Lorelai.

"Change of topic, please."

"Ok, ok. So you had a good time."

"Yeah it was great." Lorelai storing staring off into space thinking about her past weekend with Luke.

Sookie looked at her best friend's face. "Honey, are you alright?"

"What?" Lorelai asked coming out of her daze.

"Come on." Sookie said taking Lorelai's arm and pulled her towards Lorelai's office.

"Sookie what are you doing?"

"Sit." Sookie told her when they were in her office. She closed the door and sat beside Lorelai on the couch in her office.

"What's going on?"

"What do you mean what's going on?" Lorelai asked her confused.

"What was that dreamy face about in the kitchen?"

Lorelai didn't respond.

"Oh, no." Sookie said shaking her head.

"What?"

"It's that time again, isn't it?" Sookie said.

"What time? Sookie what are you talking about?" Lorelai was getting more and more confused.

"You're scared. You're scared of going to far with Luke. You're scared that it could get serious. I've seen you do it. You did it with Christopher and with Max. You can't run again, Lorelai. You have to face your fears." Sookie told Lorelai gripping her arm.

"That's the thing. I'm not scared." Lorelai told her best friend.

"You're not?" Sookie asked her in slight disbelief.

"No, I'm not. It's weird I'm not scared at all. I'm not gonna run, belief me." Lorelai tried to assure her best friend.

"You sure?" Sookie wanted to be really sure.

"Yes I'm very sure. I've never been this certain about a relationship before. I… I think Luke's the one, Sookie. He's the one I could really imagine spending the rest of my life with."

"Oh, honey, that's wonderful." Sookie hugged her best friend. "I'm so happy for you. Wait does he know this?"

"I'm not sure."

"Well, you've gotta tell him then."

"I will. I just have to find the right time for it."

"But you will tell him won't you?" Sookie wanted to make sure.

"Yes I will Sookie. I will."

"Ok, good." Sookie smiled at her. "I'm gonna get back to work."

"Yeah, me too." Lorelai said and walked over to her desk and sat down.

Sookie walked towards the door, but before she went outside she turned around again. "Lorelai?"

"Yeah?" Lorelai said looking up from her work.

"I'm really happy for you." Sookie told her sincerely.

"Thanks, Sook."

Sookie went back to the kitchen, while Lorelai started to do some of her paperwork. She had a hard time concentrating on her work. She kept thinking about the conversation with Sookie and about her weekend with Luke in Maine. It seemed like everything was falling into place now. Maybe she was getting the whole package now.

* * *

**Meanwhile….**

Luke hadn't been at this place for a while. He was standing there in the cold, the letter from his mom clenched in his hand. He didn't know why, but he was a little scared to open it. He knew it would bring up old memories, feelings that he hadn't felt in many years.

He looked down at the two names in front of him, Margaret and William Danes. The letters were starting to fade a little after all those years. He didn't come to his parents' grave very often. He didn't need to. His parents were always with him in his mind and his heart, whether he went to cemetery frequently or not.

Luke had been standing there in the cold for a quite a while now, until he finally had the courage to open the letter Liz had given to him from his mom. He carefully opened the envelope, not wanting to rip it too much. He read the words in his mother's handwriting, almost holding his breath in the process.

_My dear Lucas,_

_The fact that you are reading this letter means that you have found the woman you want to spend the rest of your life with, but unfortunately it also means that I'm no longer with you. I gave this letter to your father and asked him to give it to you along with my engagement ring in case I couldn't give this to you in person._

_By giving you this ring a long tradition is continued in our family. The ring you are going to give to your girlfriend, if you haven't already done so, has been in our family for a very long. It once belonged to your father's mother, who had also received it from her husband's mother, and maybe you will give this to your own son to give it to the woman he truly loves. _

_My dear Lucas I am very happy that you are taking the step into marriage. I can only wish for you that you and your wife-to-be will lead a marriage as happy as your father and I did. Being married is not always easy. You will face ups and downs that will make you stronger when you manage to handle them well. Deep down in my heart I know you will make this woman you chose very happy. Always treat her well, I know you will. I wish I could see the two of you together, and get to know the woman that makes you so happy that you want to spend your life with her. Remember that I will always be with you and that I will watch over you. _

_One day when you have children, make sure to tell them about your mother, tell them that I would have loved them very much. I know that you will make a wonderful father one day. Children fulfill your life in a way that you have never experienced before. You and your sister were the fulfillment of our love. I hope that you will be as happy as your father and I are. _

_I will always be with you_

_Love,_

_Mother_

_P.S.: The second page of this letter is for the woman you chose to make your wife_

Luke wiped away a single tear that had made its way down his cheek. He looked at the second page but didn't read it. He wanted Lorelai to be the first one to read his mother's words addressed to her. Luke put the pages back in the envelope and securely put it into the inside pocket of his jacket.

Luke stood at his parents' grave for a couple more minutes. He gently touched the gravestone and whispered a gentle "Thank you", before he turned around and walked back to his truck.

Back in the diner Luke went to his apartment through the backdoor of the diner. Once upstairs he walked to the small safe in the corner of the apartment and opened it. He put the envelope into the safe and took out the small velvet box that held the ring. He took out the box and opened it. There it was, his mother's ring he gently ran his thumb over the stone. He closed the box and put it back in the safe, closing it again.

* * *

**Dragonfly Inn**

It was a quarter to six and Lorelai was just finishing up her paperwork when there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

The door opened and Sookie poked her head inside. "Don't you have a date with Luke to get to?" Sookie asked her and came into Lorelai's office.

Lorelai put the papers in front of her on a stack and took her purse. "I know I'm already gone."

"Good, have fun," Sookie said walking outside with her best friend.

"Thanks," Lorelai said giving Sookie a quick hug. "Bye, Sook."

"Bye, hon." Sookie said and watched her get into her jeep before going back into the kitchen of the Dragonfly.

**Luke's apartment**

Luke was putting the food on two plates, when there was a knock at the door.

He walked to the door and opened it. "Hey, I thought I told you that you didn't have to knock anymore."

"But what if you were running around naked in here?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "I don't run around here naked, especially not when I'm awaiting company."

"So you are running around here naked sometimes." Lorelai grinned at him.

"Crazy lady." Luke bent down and gave her soft kiss.

"I know." Lorelai smiled and kissed him back.

"Something smells good in here," she said as she pulled away. "What did you make for dinner?"

"A small salad, homemade lasagna and homemade cheesecake with ice cream."

"Nice. Did you make the ice cream, too?"

"Nope, that one I bought." Luke shook his head no.

"Aww, and here I thought you were the perfect guy."

"Well, next time I'll try harder."

"Ok, good."

"So you hungry?" Luke asked her when he put down the plates on the table.

"I'm starving." Lorelai told him sitting down at the table.

"Didn't you eat anything at the Inn?" Luke asked her and sat down next to her at the table.

"Nope, didn't have the time. I had too much work. I wanted to get everything done so I could take the tomorrow off, like I planned it."

"Did you get everything done?"

"Yeah I did."

"Good."

"Luke this is delicious," Lorelai told him after taking a bite of the lasagna.

"Yeah? Good, I'm glad."

"I forgot how awesome your homemade lasagna is. You should really make this more often."

"I don't always have the time to do it, but I will try to make it more often. But also we didn't have a whole lot of dinners together since the opening of the inn."

Lorelai put down her fork and let out a long sigh. "I know and I'm really sorry, I already told you that."

"No, Lorelai, I didn't mean this as an accusation. I just meant that you've been busy with the opening of the inn, which I told you I totally understand. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that." Luke took her hand and gave it a gently squeeze.

"I know, I'm sorry, too. I didn't mean to snap at you like this. I guess I'm just a little stressed out, it was a hard day."

"It's ok."

"Thanks for being so understanding."

"Don't worry about it."

"C'mere." Lorelai said and pulled him towards her for a gently kiss.

"Eat up or you won't get any dessert." Luke told her when they pulled apart.

"You wouldn't dare to keep dessert from me." Lorelai grinned at him.

Luke thought about it for a second, "yeah, probably not."

After they had eaten up their main course, Luke put the dishes in the sink and got the ice cream out of the freezer. He put a piece of cheesecake on each plate and put a scoop of vanilla ice cream next to it.

"You wanna sit down on the couch for dessert?" Luke asked her with the plates in his hand.

"Yeah sure," she answered him and took one of the plates from him. They sat down on the couch and enjoyed their dessert.

Lorelai put her head on Luke's shoulder and sighed. "This was good. Thanks for making me dinner, honey."

Luke took the empty plate from her lap and put their empty plates on the couch table.

"You're welcome," he told her and put his arms around her shoulders.

Lorelai snuggled against his side and pulled her legs up on the couch.

The music they had put on earlier was still playing softly in the background and the two of them simply enjoyed this quiet moment together.

They were both looking out the window into the starry night. Luke was softly caressing Lorelai's arm while Lorelai had slung her free arm around his mid section, drawing little circles on his side.

After a couple of minutes Lorelai sat up straight on the couch. "Luke look, it's snowing." She said excitedly. "It's finally snowing."

Lorelai got up from the couch and walked to the window to get a better look of the snow falling outside.

Luke got up as well and stood behind her snaking his arms around her waist from behind.

"Look, it's beautiful." The snowflakes were getting thicker and thicker with every second and soon the whole town was covered in a white blanket that was glittering in the light of the streetlamps.

For a couple of minutes the two of them just there at the window looking out at the snow falling down on the town.

"You wanna go for a walk." Luke asked her.

Lorelai turned around a little so that she could look into his face.

"Seriously? You are willing to go out into the cold with all the snow falling around you?"

"Well, I know that you and Rory always go out for a walk during the first snowfall, but since she's not here right now I would be willing to fill in for her if you want me to."

Lorelai stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. "I would love to." She told him smiling up at him.

"Good then go get your shoes and your coat and we'll go for a walk. I'll be with you in a sec, I just have to find my gloves."

"Yay, hurry." Lorelai said jumping up and down slightly like a little kid and went to the door to put on her shoes and coat.

Luke made sure that she wasn't looking where he was going and quickly opened the safe. He got out the small velvet box and quietly closed the door of the safe again. He put the small box in his pocket and went to Lorelai to get his coat.

"Ready?" She asked him already half way out the door.

"Yeah, let's go." He told her and the two of them walked downstairs into the diner and outside in the snow.

TBC...

* * *

**AN2: Soo, how did you like it? Good, bad, ok... tell me in your reviews. again this chapter was not proofread yet so don't attack me for any errors. Writing the letter was really hard. I took me quite a while to write it because I wanted it to be good. I'll try to update soon. I know, I know I've been saying this for the last couple of chapters, but maybe if I'll get a couple more reviews it'll give me some more energy to write ;) Can we make the 20-25? We'll see.  
**


	26. 25 A Walk to Remember

_**A/N: I know it's been two years since my last update. Life has been keeping me busy and there were quite a few things that needed to be taken care of before I could set my focus back on writing. Now that things are falling back into place I have more time and energy to back to writing and I took this special date... June 3rd... to write a special chapter for you. I hope that there are some people out there who will read this after such a long time. It's not really long, but I hope you'll enjoy it and tell me what you think. **_

* * *

**_Chapter _25 – A Walk to Remember …**

_Previously …_

_After a couple of minutes Lorelai sat up straight on the couch. "Luke look, it's snowing." She said excitedly. "It's finally snowing." _

_Lorelai got up from the couch and walked to the window to get a better look of the snow falling outside. _

_Luke got up as well and stood behind her snaking his arms around her waist from behind. _

"_Look, it's beautiful." The snowflakes were getting thicker and thicker with every second and soon the whole town was covered in a white blanket that was glittering in the light of the streetlamps. _

_For a couple of minutes the two of them were just standing there at the window looking out at the snow falling down on the town._

"_You wanna go for a walk?" Luke asked her._

_Lorelai turned around a little so that she could look into his face. _

"_Seriously? You are willing to go out into the cold with all the snow falling around you?"_

"_Well, I know that you and Rory always go out for a walk during the first snowfall, but since she's not here right now I would be willing to fill in for her if you want me to."_

_Lorelai stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. "I would love to." She told him smiling up at him._

"_Good then go get your shoes and your coat and we'll go for a walk. I'll be with you in a sec, I just have to find my gloves."_

"_Yay, hurry." Lorelai said jumping up and down slightly like a little kid and went to the door to put on her shoes and coat._

_Luke made sure that she wasn't looking where he was going and quickly opened the safe. He got out the small velvet box and quietly closed the door of the safe again. He put the small box in his pocket and went to Lorelai to get his coat._

"_Ready?" She asked him already half way out the door._

"_Yeah, let's go." He told her and the two of them walked downstairs into the diner and outside in the snow._

* * *

**Chapter 25 – A Walk to Remember …**

"Are you coming?" Lorelai yelled from outside.

"Yeah, just a sec I can't find my gloves. Why don't you go downstairs? I'll be with you in a sec, " Luke yelled back hoping that she wouldn't come back inside looking for him.

"Okay, but hurry up or you'll miss the good stuff." Without waiting for a reply from Luke, Lorelai ran down the stairs and out of the diner.

Luke listened for another second to make sure that Lorelai was downstairs and picked up the phone. The person on the other side answered after just a few rings.

"It's me… yeah. Great thanks a lot, I owe ya. Alright, bye." Luke hung up the phone smiling to himself, grabbed his gloves and went downstairs to join, Lorelai.

Outside, he found Lorelai lying in the snow.

"What in the world are you doing?" Luke asked her while locking up the diner behind him.

"Well, duh, I'm making a snow angel." She told him with a grin, waving her arms and legs in the snow. "Don't tell me you never made a snow angel when you were a kid."

"Why would I want to lay in the snow? It's cold and wet and… cold."

"Oh you big wuss, because it's fun. Get down here join me!" Lorelai said and tried to pull him into the snow with her, but instead Luke managed to grab her and pull her into a standing position and into his arms.

Lorelai came face to face with Luke, "hi, she said grinning at him.

"Hi," Luke grinned back at her.

Lorelai wrapped her arms around Luke's neck and stood on her tiptoes while Luke tightened his grip around her waist and pulled her closer to his body so that there was no space left between them. Their lips met in a soft and sensual kiss, warming up their bodies in the cold of the night and to them it felt like they were the only two people in the world. Luke draw his head back and smiled at her with the most loving look that made Lorelai's heart melt.

"Ready to take a walk?" He said to her in this soft voice that he only used for her.

"Yeah," Lorelai nodded and smiled back at him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and they slowly made their way through the town which was now completely covered in a soft blanket of white, giving it this romantic atmosphere in the light of the nightly moon.

Luke and Lorelai simply enjoyed the quiet of the night and relished their time together, with no words necessary to express their feelings for another.

They had been walking for a good twenty minutes when Lorelai noticed that they had neared the back paddocks of the Dragonfly Inn. Lorelai questioning looked up at Luke, but Luke acted like he hadn't noticed her glancing at him.

"Luke, where are we going?" Lorelai asked a few moments later.

"You've gotta be a little more patient."

This made Lorelai even more curious, she stopped and turned towards him. "You know I'm not good with patience."

Luke chuckled. "I know, you don't have to be for long. Just a little while."

Lorelai tried to put on her best pout, hoping it would lead to Luke giving in.

"Don't give me that look," he scolded her grinning. "You just have to wait and see."

Lorelai kept nagging him, while they kept walking and got closer and closer to where Luke had planned for them to end up.

"Luke, what are we doing at the Dragonfly? I mean it's not that I don't like the Dragonfly, cause it's mine… but, you know, it's not like I don't spend enough time there already. With the winter season and all starting now there's so much to do and prepare but I think I really managed to delegate the work this year so that I won't have to spend as much time at the Inn, and so that …" Lorelai stopped abruptly. "I can spend more time with you." She finished barely above a whisper.

Without Lorelai noticing they had reach the pavilion by the lake, which was now surrounded by, what seemed to Lorelai, dozens and dozens of torchlight that stuck in the snow. There was a path guarded by the lights which led to the pavilion which was also surrounded by torches that gave the scenery an unbelievable romantic touch.

Lorelai couldn't stop gazing at the sight in front of her, while couldn't take his eyes off of Lorelai, a happy smile appearing on his face.

"What… how…Luke?" Lorelai was unable to find words.

"Do you like it?" Luke asked, not taking his eyes off Lorelai.

"Like it? I don't know what to say, how…?"

"That's my little secret." Luke told her.

Lorelai just nodded her head in disbelieve, her eyes constantly gazing between Luke and the pavilion.

Luke took her hand and slowly led her through the trail of torches up the steps and into the pavilion.

He felt his heart speeding up and took a deep breath, hoping that Lorelai was surprised enough to not interrupt him.

Now standing in the middle of the pavilion Luke took hold of her hands and took a shaky breath, which he hoped was unnoticed by Lorelai who was still taking in her surroundings.

"Many years ago, I met this beautiful young woman, who stormed into my diner begging for coffee. She had come here with her little daughter hoping to find a job 

and a new life in this town. Now, twenty-something years later, she has not only managed to find a job and turn her life around, she also managed to turn the lives of the people in this town around, including mine. I am so proud of you and of what you have accomplished. I mean, look around you… you've made your dream come true. And this is also were we started… I know that we kinda started dating at Liz's wedding but, you know… at the opening of the Inn…"

Luke was trying to find the right words to express his feelings, which was clearly not his favorite thing to do.

"What I'm trying to say is… I love you Lorelai…." he paused for a second and squeezed her hands. He noticed that Lorelai had tears in her eyes and gently brushed away a single tear that had made its way down her cheek. "… you're the best thing that has ever happened to me, Lorelai I cannot imagine ever being without you again."

While taking another shaky breath he reached into the pocket of his coat and lowered himself onto one knee in front of her. Lorelai let out a small gasp.

He pulled his hand out of his pocket and a small black velvet box appeared in his hand.

The tears were now freely running down Lorelai's cheeks. Luke opened the small box and took out the most beautiful white gold engagement ring she had ever seen.

Luke took her left hand, "Lorelai Gilmore, I love you and I wanna spend the rest of my life with you… will you marry me?"

"Yes." Lorelai said with a huge smile, tears still streaming down her face.

"Really?" Luke asked her with a big grin. Lorelai nodded her head still grinning.

Luke placed the ring on her finger and got up so that he could take his now fiancée into his arms.

Completely unlike Luke, he did a little twirl with her in his arms. After a few moments of simply holding her in his arms, relishing this moment he pulled back a little so that he could look into her eyes. "I love you," he told her barely above a whisper.

"I love you, Luke." Lorelai told her and softly kissed him.

Unnoticed by Lorelai, Derek, one of the waiters of the Dragonfly had stepped up to the pavilion holding a tray with two glasses of champagne.

Luke saw Derek out of the corner of his eye and waved him closer.

Lorelai still in an absolute daze only now noticed that there was someone else.

"Wow, you thought of everything…" she said in a whisper not letting go of her new-found fiancé.

Luke smiled and gave one of the glasses to Lorelai before taking the other one himself.

"But you hate champagne."

"Well, this is a special occasion, I think I can manage," he told her with a smile.

"Here's to us and the rest of our lives together."

"Couldn't have said it any better," Lorelai smiled at him lovingly. "To us."

Gazing into each other's eyes, they both took a sip of champagne before Luke waved in the direction of the back entrance of the Dragonfly. Just a few moments later, the other waiters of the Dragonfly came down the path carrying a set table and two chairs up the steps of the pavilion.

Lorelai couldn't believe her eyes. Luke helped her into one of the chairs, while one of the waiters lit a candle in the middle of the temple, and placed a thick blanket onto Lorelai's lap in order to keep her warm from the cold.

Just as Luke had taken a set next to Lorelai, Sookie quickly came walking towards the pavilion with two plates of pasta with lobster sauce and set them down in front of them, before pulling Lorelai up into a bear hug.

"Congratulations," she whispered into her ear.

"Thanks, Sookie."

Sookie turned to Luke and hugged him a little awkwardly. "Congratulations, Luke. You big softy. Alright, enjoy your dinner. See ya." Sookie waved at them still grinning and made her way back up to the Dragonfly.

"Wow, Luke, this is… this is amazing. How did you… how long have you been planning for this?"

"A little while. I was just waiting for the right moment, the first snow."

"It's perfect. Now, the first snow is definitely the best memory in my life." Lorelai smiled at him lovingly.

"That, was the plan. There's just one more thing…" Luke reached into his other coat pocket and pulled out his cell phone.

Lorelai looked at him questioningly.

"I think someone is waiting for your call."

"Oh my god, you really thought of everything. You're the perfect man." Lorelai said taking the phone from him dialing Rory's number.

Luke watched her squealing at the phone with Rory and thought that this was definitely the person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

**To be continued….**


End file.
